NUMERICAL INVESTIGATION OF THE SPREADING AND HEAT TRANSFER CHARACTERISTICS OF EX-VESSEL CORE MELT

Abstract

The flow and heat transfer characteristics of the ex-vessel core melt (corium) were investigated using a commercial CFD code along with the experimental data on the spreading of corium available in the literature (VULCANO VE-U7 test). In the numerical simulation of the unsteady two-phase flow, the volume-of-fluid model was applied for the spreading and interfacial surface formation of corium with the surrounding air. The effects of the key parameters were evaluated for the corium spreading, including the radiation, decay heat, temperature-dependent viscosity and initial temperature of corium. The results showed a reasonable trend of corium progression influenced by the changes in the radiation, decay heat, temperature-dependent viscosity and initial temperature of corium. The modeling of the viscosity appropriate for corium and the radiative heat transfer was critical, since the front progression and temperature profiles were strongly dependent on the models. Further development is required for the code to consider the formation of crust on the surfaces of corium and the interaction with the substrate.