Methods and Codes for the Analysis of Design Basis Accidents

Research goal

The R&D activities concentrate on validation, improvements, uncertainty quantification and coupling with other solvers in order to investigate the behaviour of Light Water Reactors (LWR) including Generation II (German PWR, BWR, VVER-1000), Gen-III (AP1000), Small Modular Reactors (SMART), and research reactors (MTR-type). Typical activities are safety evaluations of different transient (Non-LOCA and LOCA) using system thermal hydraulic codes with Point Kinetics and coupled to 3D nodal diffusion kinetics (PARCS) for safety demonstration.

Since more than 25 years, KIT is participating on the international Code Assessment and Maintenance Program (CAMP) of the US NRC and the last six years as German Representative for CAMP. Through CAMP, KIT has full access to the source codes of e.g. TRACE, RELAP5, and PARCS to a large international community of regulators, universities and research centres aimed at the improvement of safety analysis tools worldwide.

Examples

Papers

  1. Y. Alzaben, V.H. Sanchez-Espinoza, R. Stieglitz; Analysis of a control rod ejection accident in a boron-free small modular reactor with coupled neutronics/thermal-hydraulics code. ANE 134 (2019)114-124. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anucene.2019.06.009
  2. Luis Mena-Rosell, Cesar Queral, Marta Ruiz-Zapatero, Miguel Sanchez-Perea, Gonzalo Jimenez, Javier Gomez-Magan, Javier Hortal, Victor-Hugo Sanchez-Espinoza;  Analysis of PWR SBO sequences with RCP passive thermal shutdown seals. Nuclear Science and Technology 2018. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223131.2018.1428125
  3. Jose Angel Gonzalez-Vargas, V. H. Sanchez-Espinoza, R. Stieglitz, R. Macian-Juan; Development and Validation of the new Couple Code System TRADYN. Annals of Nuclear Energy 112 (2018 February) 685–692. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anucene.2017.07.027
  4. Javier Jimenez Escalante, Valentino Di Marcello, Victor Sanchez Espinoza, Yann Perin; Application of the ATHLET/COBRA-TF thermal-hydraulics coupled code to the analysis of BWR ATWS. Nuclear Engineering and Design 321 (2017) pages 318-327. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nucengdes.2016.10.001
  5. V. Sanchez, A. Miassoedov, M. Steinbrück and W. Tromm; KIT Multi-physics tools for the analysis of design and beyond design basis accidents of light water reactors. Kerntechnik 81 (2016)2 (KT110687-2.3.16)
  6. Armando Miguel Gomez-Torres, Victor Hugo Sanchez-Espinoza, Sören Kliem, Andre Gommlich; Implementation of a fast running full core pin power reconstruction method in DYN3D. NED 274 (2014)44-55. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nucengdes.2014.04.028
  7. V. H. Sánchez, M. Thieme and W. Tietsch; Validation and Application of the Thermal Hydraulic System Code TRACE for Analysis of BWR Transients. Science and Technology of Nuclear Installations Volume 2012, Article ID 247482, 9 pages
  8. V. Sanchez, W. Jaeger, M. Boettcher and B. Truong; Investigation of a Coolant Mixing Phenomena within the Reactor Pressure Vessel of a VVER-1000 Reactor with Different Simulation Tools. Science and Technology of Nuclear Installations. Volume 2010, Article ID 470794, 14 pages doi:10.1155/2010/470794
  9. W. Jäger, V. Sanchez Espinoza and W. Lischke; Safety relate Investigations of the VVER-1000 Reactor Type by the coupled code system TRACE/PARCS. Journal of Power and Energy Systems. Volume 2 No.2. 2008.