Development of a subchannel code for blockage accidents of LMFRs based on the 3D fuel rod model

To predict the thermal-hydraulic(T/H)parameters of the reactor core for liquid-metal-cooled fast reactors(LMFRs),especially under flow blockage accidents,we developed a subchannel code called KMC-FB.This code uses a time-dependent,four-equation,singlephase flow model together with a 3D heat conduction model for the fuel rods,which is solved by numerical methods based on the finite difference method with a staggered mesh.Owing to the local effect of the blockage on the flow field,low axial flow,increased forced crossflow,and backflow occur.To more accurately simulate this problem,we implemented a robust and novel solution method.We verified the code with a low-flow(~0.01 m/s)and large-scale blockage case.For the preliminary validation,we compared our results with the experimental data of the NACIE-UP BFPS blockage test and the KIT19ROD blockage test.The results revealed that KMC-FB has sufficient solution accuracy and can be used in future flow blockage analyses for LMFRs.