Steady-state multi-physics coupling analysis of heat pipe cooled reactor core

Abstract

The employment of heat pipe reactors is gaining significant traction due to their exceptional advantages in terms of mobility, safety, and applicability across a wide range of scenarios, including strategic defense locations, remote communities, and situations of power shortage. Importantly, most of the heat pipe reactors are designed as solid-state reactors, which avoids the challenges associated with two-phase flow problems that commonly arise from coolant transformation and makes it possible to analyze the reactor through the integration of multiple physical field coupling. In this paper, we conduct a 3D neutronic-thermal-mechanical coupled performance analysis of a heat pipe reactor operating under steady-state conditions. This analysis employs a combination of the Monte Carlo code and finite element analysis software, facilitating in-depth insights into the behavior of reactor. Coupling calculation results show that under normal operation, the maximum temperature and thermal expansion of core is 1338.94 K and 2.53 mm. In the steady-state coupling process, the influence of temperature parameters on neutronic calculation is mainly reflected in keff and its power level, the maximum temperature drops from 1347.26 K to 1338.94 K, but it has little influence on power distribution. By coupling calculations, the maximum stress of the reactor is reduced by 5.78 MPa. The research results will support the subsequent development of multi-physics coupled transient analysis code for heat pipe reactors.