Abstracts and Available Papers Presented at the 2004 International RERTR Meeting
USE OF COMPUTATIONAL FLUID DYNAMICS (CFD) TOOLS FOR FUEL
ASSEMBLY ANALYSIS
P. L. Garner and T. Sofu Argonne National Laboratory, 9700 South Cass Avenue,
Argonne, Illinois, 60439 - USA
ABSTRACT
The STAR-CD computer program for Computational Fuel
Dynamics (CFD) has been applied to the Russian pin-type
fuel assemblies proposed as low enriched uranium (LEU)
replacements for the high enriched uranium (HEU) (36%)
IRT-3M fuel assemblies currently used in the WWR-SM
reactor in Uzbekistan. For fuel assemblies containing
twisted, finned pin-type fuel, STAR-CD was first used to
model the single pin having the highest power density
along with its associated coolant as an isolated unit
cell. Velocity, pressure, temperature, heat flux, etc.
were calculated on a detailed spatial basis in the
coolant, cladding, and fuel. The model was then expanded
to include multiple fuel pins; the computed motion of
coolant from one portion of the assembly to another can
reduce the peak temperatures below what one would
compute using a single-pin model and, thus, change
conclusions regarding the margin to onset of nucleate
boiling. STAR-CD has also been applied to the IRT-3M
tube-type fuel assemblies in the current HEU core.
Contact: Dr. Jordi Roglans-Ribas
Technical Director, RERTR Department
Nuclear Engineering Division – 362
Argonne National Laboratory
9700 South Cass Avenue
Argonne, IL 60439
Fax: +1 630-252-5161
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