No description available.

Master of Science / Department of Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering / Donald L. Fenton / Increase in demand for energy necessitates nuclear power units to increase their peak power limits. This increase implies significant changes in the design of the nuclear power unit core in order to provide better economy and safety in operations. A major hindrance to the increase of nuclear reactor performance especially in Pressurized Water Reactors (PWR) is the so called ‘Axial Offset Anomaly (AOA)’. An Axial Offset Anomaly (AOA) is the unexpected change in the core axial power distribution during the operation of a PWR from the predicted distribution. This problem is thought to be occurring because of precipitation and deposition of lithiated compounds such as lithium metaborate (LiBO[subscript]2) on the fuel rod. Due to its intrinsic property, the deposited boron absorbs neutrons thereby affecting the total power distribution in the reactor. AOA is thought to occur when there is sufficient build up of crud deposits on the cladding during subcooled nucleate boiling. Predicting AOA is difficult because there is little information regarding the heat and mass transfer during subcooled nucleate boiling. This thesis describes the experimental investigation that was conducted to study the heat transfer characteristics during subcooled nucleate boiling at prototypical PWR conditions. Pool boiling tests were conducted with varying concentrations of LiBO[subscript]2 and boric acid (H[subscript]2BO[subscript]3) solutions along with deionized water. The experimental data collected includes the effect of coolant concentration, degree of subcooling, system pressure and heat flux on pool boiling heat transfer coefficients. An analysis of deposits formed on the fuel rod during subcooled nucleate boiling is also included in the thesis. The experimental results reveal that the pool boiling heat transfer coefficient is degraded by the presence of boric acid and lithium metaborate in water. At concentration of 5000 ppm in water, the boric acid solution reduced the heat transfer coefficient by 23% and lithium metaborate solution reduced the heat transfer coefficient by 26%.

No description available.

In the process of engine design, it is important for the engine designer to predict the accurate component temperatures. Controlling the temperature of engine components requires a better understanding of the coolant behaviour in the coolant jacket of an engine which is critical to internal combustion engine design, The studies reported in the literature emphasize the influence of the cooling system on other engine operation such as exhaust emission, fuel consumption and engine wear. In this context, much work has been done with the purpose of improving the coolant jacket design and components of the cooling system to achieve higher performance. (Some of these studies) Previous researches have shown the possibility of achieving higher engine efficiency and performance with higher coolant temperature. This project aims at understanding the coolant flow behaviour in the coolant jackets of a diesel engine and investigating the possibility of running the engine at higher coolant temperatures by predicting the temperature distribution of the structure which is required for the assessment of the durability ofthe engine components. In this thesis, CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) and FE (Finite Element) techniques are used to study coolant flow in the coolant jackets and to predict the temperature distribution within the engine structure respectively. The objectives are to develop an FE model of the engine structure for thermal analyses and a CFD model of the fluid domain for the coolant flow CFD analyses. A number of case studies are carried out with the purpose of determining the most suitable technique for accurate temperature prediction. The methodology of manual coupling approach between CFD and FE analyses, which is more widely used in industry, and conjugate approach are demonstrated. Using these approaches, thermal analysis of the engine is conducted with the purpose of identifying the thermally critical locations throughout the engine. Furthermore, the influences of higher coolant temperature on these thermally critical regions of the engine are highlighted by carrying out four case studies with coolant inlet temperatures of 110°C, !ISOC, 117.5"C and !20°C. The temperature rise at the particular points around thermally critical regions is found to be in the range of 3-9 degrees at the higher coolant temperatures. This slight increase in temperature of critical locations may affect the durability of the structure. However, without carrying out the structural analyses it is not possible to comment on the durability of the engine structure. The effects of surface roughness and viscosity on heat transfer rate are also investigated and shown to be insignificant.

A segurança de instalações nucleares é uma preocupação mundial que tem crescido, sobretudo, após o acidente nuclear de Fukushima. O estudo de acidentes em reatores nucleares de pesquisa tal como o Acidente de Perda de Refrigerante (APR), considerado por muitas vezes um acidente base de projeto, é importante para garantir a integridade da instalação. O APR pode levar ao descobrimento parcial ou total do núcleo do reator e, como condição de segurança, deve-se garantir que haja a remoção do calor de decaimento dos elementos combustíveis. Esse trabalho teve o objetivo de realizar experimentos de descobrimento parcial e total no Elemento Combustível Instrumentado (ECI), construído no Instituto de Pesquisas Energética e Nucleares (IPEN), a fim de estudar os possíveis APRs em reatores de pesquisa. Uma seção de testes, denominada STAR, foi projetada e construída para simular os APRs. O ECI foi irradiado no núcleo do reator IEA-R1 (IPEN) e inserido na STAR, que ficou totalmente imersa na piscina do reator. No ECI, foram instalados termopares para medição das temperaturas do revestimento e do fluido em várias posições axiais e radiais. Foram realizados experimentos para cinco níveis de descobrimento do ECI, um total e quatro parciais, em duas condições distintas de calor de decaimento. Na análise dos resultados, verificou-se que os casos de descobrimento total foram os mais críticos, ou seja, as temperaturas do revestimento foram as maiores quando comparadas com os casos de descobrimentos parciais. Adicionalmente, foi realizada a simulação numérica de dois experimentos com o código RELAP5, cujos resultados demonstraram ótima concordância com os dos níveis experimentais, e temperaturas maiores que as experimentais. As máximas temperaturas do revestimento alcançadas em todos os experimentos ficaram bem abaixo da temperatura de empolamento do combustível, que é de 500°C. Assim, a STAR provou ser um aparato experimental seguro e confiável para a realização de experimentos de perda de refrigerante. / The safety of nuclear facilities has been a growing global concern mainly after the Fukushima nuclear accident. Studies on nuclear research reactor accidents such as the Loss of Coolant Accident (LOCA), considered many times a design basis accident, are important for guaranteeing the integrity of the plant. A LOCA may lead to the partial or complete uncovering of the fuel assemblies and assured decay heat removal is a safety condition. This work aimed to perform partial and complete uncovering experiments in the Instrumented Fuel Assembly (IFA) designed at the Instituto de Pesquisas Energéticas e Nucleares (IPEN) in order to study possible LOCAs in research reactors. A test section for experimental simulation of Loss of Coolant Accident named STAR was designed and built. The IFA was irradiated in the IEA-R1 and installed in the STAR, which was totally immersed in the reactor pool. Thermocouples were installed in the IFA to measure the clad and fluid temperatures in several axial and radial positions. The experiments were carried out for five levels of uncovering of IFA, being one complete uncovering and four partial uncovering, in two different conditions of decay heat. In the results analysis was observed that the cases of complete uncovering of the IFA were the most critical ones, that is, those cases presented higher clad temperatures when compared with partial uncovering cases. Additionally, a numerical simulation of two experiments was carried out by using the RELAP 5 code. The numerical results showed an optimum agreement with the experimental levels results and greater than the experimental temperatures. The maximum clad temperatures reached in all experiments were quite below the fuel blister temperature, which is 500 °C. Therefore, the STAR has proven to be a safe and reliable experimental apparatus for conducting loss of coolant experiments.

Es wurde ein Modell zur realistischen Beschreibung der Kühlmittelvermischung innerhalb des Reaktordruckbehälters von Druckwasserreaktoren in den gekoppelten Programmkomplex DYN3D/ATHLET implementiert. Diese Modell basiert auf dem Prinzip der linearen Superposition Dirac-Impuls-ähnlicher Störungen und kann für die Modellierung der Vermischung von Kühlmittel unterschiedlicher Temperatur und/oder unterschiedlicher Borsäurekonzentration eingesetzt werden. Der um das Vermischungsmodell erweiterte Programmkomplex DYN3D/ATHLET wurde für Analyse von Borverdünnungsstörfällen und Frischdampflecks angewandt. Für den Fall "Start der ersten Hauptkühlmittelpumpe bei Vorhandensein eines minderborierten Pfropfens im kalten Strang" zeigten die Ergebnisse der durchgeführten Parameterstudie, dass es selbst bei Annahme des maximal möglichen Pfropfenvolumens nicht zu einer Schädigung des Brennstoffes kommt. Mit den Analysen zu einem generischen Frischdampfleckszenario wurde die Anwendbarkeit des Programmkomplexes DYN3D/ATHLET auf die zweite Störfallklasse, in der die Kühlmittelvermischung eine wichtige Rollen spielt, demonstriert. Im Rahmen der Arbeiten zum Projekt wurde außerdem gezeigt, dass der Einfluss der turbulenten Schwankungen des Geschwindigkeitsfeldes innerhalb des Reaktordruckbehälters auf neutronenkinetische Parameter im Nominalbetrieb und unter Störfallbedingungen nicht zu vernachlässigen ist. A model for the realistic description of the coolant mixing inside the pressure vessel of pressurized water reactors was implemented into the coupled code complex DYN3D/ATHLET. This model is based on the linear superposition Dirac-pulse-like perturbations. The model can be applied to the mixing of coolant of different temperature and/or boron concentration. The coupled code complex DYN3D/ATHLET with the newly implemented model was applied to the analysis of boron dilution and steam line break accidents. The results of a parameter study for the case "Start-up of the first main coolant pump with a slug of lower borated water in the cold leg" have shown, that even under the conditions of the maximum slug volume there is no fuel damage. The applicability to the second class of accidents, where the coolant mixing has to be considered, was demonstrated by the analysis of a generic main steam line break scenario. Further it was shown, that the influence of turbulent fluctuations of the velocity inside the reactor pressure vessel during nominal and accident conditions on neutron-kinetic parameters cannot be neglected.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:34:58Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2005Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T19:04:58Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 souza_jvc_dr_guara.pdf: 3439864 bytes, checksum: 8f665815b08c108458b7f10749c5f6bb (MD5) / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) / Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) / Nesse trabalho foram desenvolvidas três composições à base de Si3N4 com quantidades e tipos de aditivos diferentes, com objetivos de desenvolver cerâmicas densas de altas resistências, para posteriores testes como ferramentas de corte na usinagem de torneamento do ferro fundido cinzento, ferro fundido vermicular e a liga Ti-6Al-4V. As composições utilizaram aditivos Y2O3/Al2O3 (10%) e AlN/Y2O3 (15 e 20%), e foram sinterizadas pelo processo de sinterização normal. Em seguida foram caracterizadas quanto as propriedades físicas e mecânicas, apresentando bons resultados. Posteriormente a composição de melhores propriedades (SNYA20), foi transformada em inserto para usinagem de corte de acordo com a norma ISO 1832. Os testes de torneamento foram realizados no ferro fundido cinzento com variações de parâmentros, onde para Vc=300m/min, f=0,32mm/rot e ap=1,00mm, alcançou um comprimento de corte de 6533m, superior aos encontrados em literatura, com diminuição dos desgastes, para maiores Vc e ap. O torneamento da liga Ti-6Al-4V em alta velocidade (Vc=180m/min, f=0,10mm/rot e ap=0,50mm), alcançou comprimento de corte de Lc=466m, para um desgaste VBmax=2,20mm. No torneamento do ferro fundido vermicular, com variações de parâmetros, alcançou resultados superiores aos encontrados na literatura com ferramentas cerâmicas comercial, utilizando Vc=200mm/min, f=0,20mm/rot e ap= 0,50mm, obteve-se comprimento de corte Lc=1658m. Os resultados de usinagem obtidos nesse trabalho estão relacionados com as propriedades e fases obtidas. Entretanto alem dos resultados obtidos essas ferramentas apresentam custo em torno de 50% das comerciais e redução de 17- 20% de custo no processo, devido ao uso de fluido refrigerante e proteção ao meio ambiente. / In this work three compositions to base Si3N4 with amounts and types of different additives had been developed, with objective to develop dense ceramics of high strength to possible test as cutting tools in turning of gray cast iron, compacted graphite iron and titanium alloy (Ti-6Al-4V). The compositions had used additives Y2O3/Al2O3 (10%) and AlN/Y2O3 (15 and 20%), and were sinterized by process normal sintering. After sintering the physical and mechanical properties had been characterized, showing interesting results. Posterior the composition the best properties (SNYA20), was transformed into cutting tools to machining in the stand norm ISO 1832. The turning tests had been carried in gray cast iron with different parameters, where to Vc=300m/min, f=0,32mm/rev and ap=1,00mm, obtained a cut length of 6533m, achieving value superior at found in literature, with important reduction to larger cutting speed and cut depth. The turning of the Ti-6Al-4V alloy in high cutting speed (Vc=180m/min, f=0,10mm/rev and ap=0,50mm), obtained cutting length of Lc=466m, to VBmax=2,20mm. In turning compacted graphite iron, with different parameters, obtained value superior at found in literature, when utilize cutting tools ceramics of commercial materials, using for this Vc=200mm/min, f=0,20mm/rev and ap = 0,50mm. These condition obtained cut length of Lc=1658m. The results achieved in this work have been associated with the important physical and mechanical proprieties and phase of cutting tools. However the results obtained with these cutting tools present lower cost (50%) when compared with commercial cutting tools of similar material e reduction of cost in around 17-20%, because the do not use coolant, beside of protection at environment.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-10-09T12:26:10Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 / Made available in DSpace on 2014-10-09T14:10:22Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 00951.pdf: 4937591 bytes, checksum: 160731d29ec9edf1fc78d0034f24638b (MD5) / Thesis (Doctorate) / IPEN/T / Massachusetts Institute of Technology - Cambridge, Mass - MIT

Orientador: Rubens Maciel Filho / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Quimica / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-15T04:17:09Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Morais_EdvaldoRodrigode_D.pdf: 6747685 bytes, checksum: c02b586c7235aff32140ce7dcd3c8e2c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007 / Resumo: Em reações altamente exotérmicas, uma das principais características dos reatores catalíticos de leito fixo está relacionada ao surgimento do ponto quente ou hot-spot, sendo sua prevenção de fundamental importância para o bom desempenho do reator, uma vez que ele pode levar ao aumento excessivo da temperatura no leito catalítico, o que poderia resultar em possíveis condições de instabilidade. Um fator importante para estabelecer limites de estabilidade e que, portanto, deve ser considerado dentro do projeto de reatores catalíticos de leito fixo, está relacionado à escolha da configuração de escoamento do fluido refrigerante. Desta forma, duas novas configurações de escoamento para o fluido refrigerante, empregando simultaneamente as configurações convencionais co-corrente e contra-corrente, são propostas. O objetivo é explorar e analisar a influência de diferentes configurações de refrigeração sobre o comportamento de reatores catalíticos de leito fixo monotubulares e multitubulares através de sua modelagem e simulação, reduzindo assim os efeitos do ponto-quente sobre o comportamento estacionário do reator. O emprego de modelos multitubulares é essencial quando existe a necessidade de se considerar detalhadamente todos os aspectos relacionados ao projeto mecânico do reator e também onde as interações existentes entre os tubos forem importantes. Dentre as configurações de refrigeração empregadas estão as formas convencionais, denominadas co-corrente e contra-corrente, e também as configurações mistas, que utilizam ambas as formas convencionais simultaneamente. Como caso de estudo é considerada a reação de oxidação parcial do benzeno em anidrido maleico sobre catalisador de pentóxido de vanádio (V2O5), a qual apresenta equações de taxa complexas e é altamente exotérmica, e representa uma importante classe dentro dos processos industriais. Para tanto foram desenvolvidos softwares escritos em FORTRAN 90 capazes de permitir ao usuário o estudo de diversas configurações de refrigeração e diferentes condições de operação e de projeto, tanto para o reator monotubular quanto multitubular, sendo ainda compatíveis com outras reações de interesse industrial, o que torna os procedimentos e a metodologia desenvolvidos de uso geral / Abstract: One of the main characteristics of fixed bed catalytic reactors when high exothermic reactions are carried out is the presence of the hot-spot. Prevention of hot-spot appearance is extremely important for good reactor performance, since it can lead to an excessive increase in reactor bed temperature, which could result in unstable conditions. An important factor to establish stability limits and, therefore, to be considered during the fixed bed catalytic reactor design is the choice of the coolant flow pattern. In doing so, two new coolant flow patterns are purposed using both co-current and counter-current conventional configurations simultaneously. The main objective is to explore and analyze the influence of different cooling modes on the monotubular and multitubular fixed bed catalytic reactors behavior through their modeling and simulation, reducing in this way the effects of the hot-spot on the steady state reactor behavior. The use of multitubular models is essential when there is a need to consider in detail all aspects related to the reactor mechanical design and also where the interactions between tubes are important. Among the cooling modes used are the conventional flow patterns, called co-current and counter-current, and also the mixed flow patterns, which use both conventional forms simultaneously. As a case study, the reaction of partial oxidation of benzene to maleic anhydride over a vanadium pentoxide catalyst (V2O5) is considered, which presents complex rate equations, is highly exothermic, and represent an important class of industrial processes. Bearing this in mind, FORTRAN 90 softwares that permit the user to study different cooling modes and various operational and design conditions for both mono-tubular and multitubular reactors were developed. These softwares are compatible with other reactions of industrial interest, which makes the procedures and methodology developed for general use / Doutorado / Desenvolvimento de Processos Químicos / Doutor em Engenharia Química

A segurança de instalações nucleares é uma preocupação mundial que tem crescido, sobretudo, após o acidente nuclear de Fukushima. O estudo de acidentes em reatores nucleares de pesquisa tal como o Acidente de Perda de Refrigerante (APR), considerado por muitas vezes um acidente base de projeto, é importante para garantir a integridade da instalação. O APR pode levar ao descobrimento parcial ou total do núcleo do reator e, como condição de segurança, deve-se garantir que haja a remoção do calor de decaimento dos elementos combustíveis. Esse trabalho teve o objetivo de realizar experimentos de descobrimento parcial e total no Elemento Combustível Instrumentado (ECI), construído no Instituto de Pesquisas Energética e Nucleares (IPEN), a fim de estudar os possíveis APRs em reatores de pesquisa. Uma seção de testes, denominada STAR, foi projetada e construída para simular os APRs. O ECI foi irradiado no núcleo do reator IEA-R1 (IPEN) e inserido na STAR, que ficou totalmente imersa na piscina do reator. No ECI, foram instalados termopares para medição das temperaturas do revestimento e do fluido em várias posições axiais e radiais. Foram realizados experimentos para cinco níveis de descobrimento do ECI, um total e quatro parciais, em duas condições distintas de calor de decaimento. Na análise dos resultados, verificou-se que os casos de descobrimento total foram os mais críticos, ou seja, as temperaturas do revestimento foram as maiores quando comparadas com os casos de descobrimentos parciais. Adicionalmente, foi realizada a simulação numérica de dois experimentos com o código RELAP5, cujos resultados demonstraram ótima concordância com os dos níveis experimentais, e temperaturas maiores que as experimentais. As máximas temperaturas do revestimento alcançadas em todos os experimentos ficaram bem abaixo da temperatura de empolamento do combustível, que é de 500°C. Assim, a STAR provou ser um aparato experimental seguro e confiável para a realização de experimentos de perda de refrigerante. / The safety of nuclear facilities has been a growing global concern mainly after the Fukushima nuclear accident. Studies on nuclear research reactor accidents such as the Loss of Coolant Accident (LOCA), considered many times a design basis accident, are important for guaranteeing the integrity of the plant. A LOCA may lead to the partial or complete uncovering of the fuel assemblies and assured decay heat removal is a safety condition. This work aimed to perform partial and complete uncovering experiments in the Instrumented Fuel Assembly (IFA) designed at the Instituto de Pesquisas Energéticas e Nucleares (IPEN) in order to study possible LOCAs in research reactors. A test section for experimental simulation of Loss of Coolant Accident named STAR was designed and built. The IFA was irradiated in the IEA-R1 and installed in the STAR, which was totally immersed in the reactor pool. Thermocouples were installed in the IFA to measure the clad and fluid temperatures in several axial and radial positions. The experiments were carried out for five levels of uncovering of IFA, being one complete uncovering and four partial uncovering, in two different conditions of decay heat. In the results analysis was observed that the cases of complete uncovering of the IFA were the most critical ones, that is, those cases presented higher clad temperatures when compared with partial uncovering cases. Additionally, a numerical simulation of two experiments was carried out by using the RELAP 5 code. The numerical results showed an optimum agreement with the experimental levels results and greater than the experimental temperatures. The maximum clad temperatures reached in all experiments were quite below the fuel blister temperature, which is 500 °C. Therefore, the STAR has proven to be a safe and reliable experimental apparatus for conducting loss of coolant experiments.