Numerical and theoretical investigations of heat transfer characteristics in helium-xenon cooled microreactor core

Helium-xenon cooled microreactors are a vital technological solution for portable nuclear reactor power sources.To exam-ine the convective heat transfer behavior of helium-xenon gas mixtures in a core environment,numerical simulations are conducted on a cylindrical coolant channel and its surrounding solid regions.Validated numerical methods are used to determine the effect and mechanisms of power and its distribution,inlet temperature and velocity,and outlet pressure on the distribution and change trend of the axial Nusselt number.Furthermore,a theoretical framework that can describe the effect of power variation on the evolution of the thermal boundary layer is employed to formulate an axial distribution cor-relation for the Nusselt number of the coolant channel,under the assumption of a cosine distribution for the axial power.Based on the simulation results,the correlation coefficients are determined,and a semi-empirical relationship is identified under the corresponding operating conditions.The correlation derived in this study is consistent with the simulations,with an average relative error of 5.3%under the operating conditions.Finally,to improve the accuracy of the predictions near the entrance,a segmented correlation is developed by combining the Kays correlation with the aforementioned correlation.The new correlation reduces the average relative error to 2.9%and maintains satisfactory accuracy throughout the entire axial range of the channel,thereby demonstrating its applicability to turbulent heat transfer calculations for helium-xenon gas mixtures within the core environment.These findings provide valuable insights into the convective heat transfer behavior of a helium-xenon gas mixture in a core environment.

Reactor field reconstruction from sparse and movable sensors using Voronoi tessellation-assisted convolutional neural networks

The aging of operational reactors leads to increased mechanical vibrations in the reactor interior.The vibration of the incore sensors near their nominal locations is a new problem for neutronic field reconstruction.Current field-reconstruction methods fail to handle spatially moving sensors.In this study,we propose a Voronoi tessellation technique in combination with convolutional neural networks to handle this challenge.Observations from movable in-core sensors were projected onto the same global field structure using Voronoi tessellation,holding the magnitude and location information of the sensors.General convolutional neural networks were used to learn maps from observations to the global field.The proposed method reconstructed multi-physics fields(including fast flux,thermal flux,and power rate)using observations from a single field(such as thermal flux).Numerical tests based on the IAEA benchmark demonstrated the potential of the proposed method in practical engineering applications,particularly within an amplitude of 5 cm around the nominal locations,which led to average relative errors below 5% and 10% in the L_(2) and L_(∞)norms,respectively.

Dynamic simulation analysis of molten salt reactor-coupled air-steam combined cycle power generation system

A nonlinear dynamic simulation model based on coordinated control of speed and flow rate for the molten salt reactor and combined cycle systems is proposed here to ensure the coordination and stability between the molten salt reactor and power system.This model considers the impact of thermal properties of fluid variation on accuracy and has been validated with Simulink.This study reveals the capability of the control system to compensate for anomalous situations and maintain shaft stability in the event of perturbations occurring in high-temperature molten salt tank outlet parameters.Meanwhile,the control system’s impact on the system’s dynamic characteristics under molten salt disturbance is also analyzed.The results reveal that after the disturbance occurs,the controlled system benefits from the action of the control,and the overshoot and disturbance amplitude are positively correlated,while the system power and frequency eventually return to the initial values.This simulation model provides a basis for utilizing molten salt reactors for power generation and maintaining grid stability.

Review on synergistic damage effect of irradiation and corrosion on reactor structural alloys

The synergistic damage effect of irradiation and corrosion of reactor structural materials has been a prominent research focus.This paper provides a comprehensive review of the synergistic effects on the third-and fourth-generation fission nuclear energy structural materials used in pressurized water reactors and molten salt reactors.The competitive mechanisms of multiple influencing factors,such as the irradiation dose,corrosion type,and environmental temperature,are summarized in this paper.Conceptual approaches are proposed to alleviate the synergistic damage caused by irradiation and corrosion,thereby promoting in-depth research in the future and solving this key challenge for the structural materials used in reactors.

High-resolution neutronics model for ^(238)Pu production in high-flux reactors

We proposed and compared three methods(filter burnup,single energy burnup,and burnup extremum analysis)to build a high-resolution neutronics model for 238Pu production in high-flux reactors.The filter burnup and single energy burnup methods have no theoretical approximation and can achieve a spectrum resolution of up to~1 eV,thereby constructing the importance curve and yield curve of the full energy range.The burnup extreme analysis method combines the importance and yield curves to consider the influence of irradiation time on production efficiency,thereby constructing extreme curves.The three curves,which quantify the transmutation rate of the nuclei in each energy region,are of physical significance because they have similar distributions.A high-resolution neutronics model for ^(238)Pu production was established based on these three curves,and its universality and feasibility were proven.The neutronics model can guide the neutron spectrum optimization and improve the yield of ^(238)Pu by up to 18.81%.The neutronics model revealed the law of nuclei transmutation in all energy regions with high spectrum resolution,thus providing theoretical support for high-flux reactor design and irradiation production of ^(238)Pu.

Proposal of a Deuterium-Deuterium Fusion Reactor Intended for a Large Power Plant

This article looks for the necessary conditions to use Deuterium-Deuterium (D-D) fusion for a large power plant. At the moment, for nearly all the projects (JET, ITER…) only the Deuterium-Tritium (D-T) fuel is considered for a power plant. However, as shown in this article, even if a D-D reactor would be necessarily much bigger than a D-T reactor due to the much weaker fusion reactivity of the D-D fusion compared to the D-T fusion, a D-D reactor size would remain under an acceptable size. Indeed, a D-D power plant would be necessarily large and powerful, i.e. the net electric power would be equal to a minimum of 1.2 GWe and preferably above 10 GWe. A D-D reactor would be less complex than a D-T reactor as it is not necessary to obtain Tritium from the reactor itself. It is proposed the same type of reactor yet proposed by the author in a previous article, i.e. a Stellarator “racetrack” magnetic loop. The working of this reactor is continuous. It is reminded that the Deuterium is relatively abundant on the sea water, and so it constitutes an almost inexhaustible source of energy. Thanks to secondary fusions (D-T and D-He3) which both occur at an appreciable level above 100 keV, plasma can stabilize around such high equilibrium energy (i.e. between 100 and 150 keV). The mechanical gain (Q) of such reactor increases with the internal pipe radius, up to 4.5 m. A radius of 4.5 m permits a mechanical gain (Q) of about 17 which thanks to a modern thermo-dynamical conversion would lead to convert about 21% of the thermal power issued from the D-D reactor in a net electric power of 20 GWe. The goal of the article is to create a physical model of the D-D reactor so as to estimate this one without the need of a simulator and finally to estimate the dimensions, power and yield of such D-D reactor for different net electrical powers. The difficulties of the modeling of such reactor are listed in this article and would certainly be applicable to a future D-He3 reactor, if any.

Application of the CatBoost Model for Stirred Reactor State Monitoring Based on Vibration Signals

Stirred reactors are key equipment in production,and unpredictable failures will result in significant economic losses and safety issues.Therefore,it is necessary to monitor its health state.To achieve this goal,in this study,five states of the stirred reactor were firstly preset:normal,shaft bending,blade eccentricity,bearing wear,and bolt looseness.Vibration signals along x,y and z axes were collected and analyzed in both the time domain and frequency domain.Secondly,93 statistical features were extracted and evaluated by ReliefF,Maximal Information Coefficient(MIC)and XGBoost.The above evaluation results were then fused by D-S evidence theory to extract the final 16 features that are most relevant to the state of the stirred reactor.Finally,the CatBoost algorithm was introduced to establish the stirred reactor health monitoring model.The validation results showed that the model achieves 100%accuracy in detecting the fault/normal state of the stirred reactor and 98%accuracy in diagnosing the type of fault.

An innovative approach to effective breeding blanket design for future fusion reactors

An effective breeding blanket is critical to support tritium self-sufficiency for future fusion reactors.The difficulty is to achieve tritium breeding ratio(TBR)target of 1.05 or more.This paper presents a new design approach to the blanket design process.It indicates that fusion blanket design is affected by universal functions based on iterations.Three aspects are worth more attention from fusion engineers in the future.The first factor is that the iterations on the material fractions affect not only structure scheme but also TBR variation.The second factor is the cooling condition affecting final TBR due to the change of the structure material proportion.The third factor is temperature field related to the tritium release.In particular,it is suggested that the statistical calculation of effective TBR must be under reasonable control of the blanket temperature field.This approach is novel for blanket engineering in development of a fusion reactor.

Induction System for a Fusion Reactor: Quantum Mechanics Chained up

In the quest for a sustainable and abundant energy source, nuclear fusion technology stands as a beacon of hope. This study introduces a groundbreaking quantum mechanically effective induction system designed for magnetic plasma confinement within fusion reactors. The pursuit of clean energy, essential to combat climate change, hinges on the ability to harness nuclear fusion efficiently. Traditional approaches have faced challenges in plasma stability and energy efficiency. The novel induction system presented here not only addresses these issues but also transforms fusion reactors into integrated construction systems. This innovation promises compact fusion reactors, marking a significant step toward a clean and limitless energy future, free from the constraints of traditional power sources. This revolutionary quantum induction system redefines plasma confinement in fusion reactors, unlocking clean, compact, and efficient energy production.

Effect of internal structure of a batch-processing wet-etch reactor on fluid flow and heat transfer

Batch-processing wet-etch reactors are the key equipment widely used in chip fabrication,and their performance is largely affected by the internal structure.This work develops a three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics(CFD)model considering heat generation of wet-etching reactions to investigate the fluid flow and heat transfer in the wet-etch reactor.The backflow is observed below and above the wafer region,as the flow resistance in this region is high.The temperature on the upper part of a wafer is higher due to the accumulation of reaction heat,and the average temperature of the side wafer is highest as its convective heat transfer is weakest.Narrowing the gap between wafer and reactor wall can force the etchant to flow in the wafer region and then facilitate the convective heat transfer,leading to better within-wafer and wafer-to-wafer etch uniformities.An inlet angle of 60°balances fluid by-pass and mechanical energy loss,and it yields the best temperature and etch uniformities.The batch with 25wafers has much wider flow channels and much lower flow resistance compared with that with 50wafers,and thus it shows better temperature and etch uniformities.These results and the CFD model should serve to guide the optimal design of batch-processing wet-etch reactors.

Engineering and Physical Bases of Development and Creation of Plasmochemical Reactors for Mobile Facilities for Medical Waste Disposal

This paper presents the results of the development and creation of plasma-chemical reactors for mobile and stationary installations for the destruction and disposal of solid, liquid, gaseous and mixed medical waste based on the domestic plasma generator PUN-1, with air as the plasma-forming gas. The design and principle of operation of plasma-chemical reactors installed on mobile experimental and industrial plants “Plazmon-1,2,3”, as well as the main features of the plasma waste disposal process are described.

Optimizing near-carbon-free nuclear energy systems:advances in reactor operation digital twin through hybrid machine learning algorithms for parameter identification and state estimation

Accurate and efficient online parameter identification and state estimation are crucial for leveraging digital twin simulations to optimize the operation of near-carbon-free nuclear energy systems.In previous studies,we developed a reactor operation digital twin(RODT).However,non-differentiabilities and discontinuities arise when employing machine learning-based surrogate forward models,challenging traditional gradient-based inverse methods and their variants.This study investigated deterministic and metaheuristic algorithms and developed hybrid algorithms to address these issues.An efficient modular RODT software framework that incorporates these methods into its post-evaluation module is presented for comprehensive comparison.The methods were rigorously assessed based on convergence profiles,stability with respect to noise,and computational performance.The numerical results show that the hybrid KNNLHS algorithm excels in real-time online applications,balancing accuracy and efficiency with a prediction error rate of only 1%and processing times of less than 0.1 s.Contrastingly,algorithms such as FSA,DE,and ADE,although slightly slower(approximately 1 s),demonstrated higher accuracy with a 0.3%relative L_2 error,which advances RODT methodologies to harness machine learning and system modeling for improved reactor monitoring,systematic diagnosis of off-normal events,and lifetime management strategies.The developed modular software and novel optimization methods presented offer pathways to realize the full potential of RODT for transforming energy engineering practices.

Transient Analysis of a Reactor Coolant Pump Rotor Seizure Nuclear Accident

The reactor coolant pump(RCP)rotor seizure accident is defined as a short-time seizure of the RCP rotor.This event typically leads to an abrupt flow decrease in the corresponding loop and an ensuing reactor and turbine trip.The significant reduction of core coolant flow while the reactor is being operated at full load can have very negative consequences.This potentially dangerous event is typically characterized by a complex transient behavior in terms of flow conditions and energy transformation,which need to be analyzed and understood.This study constructed transient flow and rotational speed mathematical models under various degrees of rotor seizure using the test data collected from a dedicated transient rotor seizure test system.Then,bidirectional fluid-solid coupling simulations were conducted to investigate the flow evolution mechanism.It is found that the influence of the impeller structure size and transient braking acceleration on the unsteady head(Hu)is dominant in rotor seizure accident events.Moreover,the present results also show that the rotational acceleration additional head(Hu1)is much higher than the instantaneous head(Hu2).

Preliminary safety analysis for heavy water-moderated molten salt reactor

The heavy water-moderated molten salt reactor(HWMSR)is a newly proposed reactor concept,in which heavy water is adopted as the moderator and molten salt dissolved with fissile and fertile elements is used as the fuel.Issues arising from graphite in traditional molten salt reactors,including the positive temperature coefficient and management of highly radio-active spent graphite waste,can be addressed using the HWMSR.Until now,research on the HWMSR has been centered on the core design and nuclear fuel cycle to explore the viability of the HWMSR and its advantages in fuel utilization.However,the core safety of the HWMSR has not been extensively studied.Therefore,we evaluate typical accidents in a small modular HWMSR,including fuel salt inlet temperature overcooling and overheating accidents,fuel salt inlet flow rate decrease,heavy water inlet temperature overcooling accidents,and heavy water inlet mass flow rate decrease accidents,based on a neutronics and thermal-hydraulics coupled code.The results demonstrated that the core maintained safety during the investigated accidents.

Photocatalytic ozonation-based degradation of phenol by ZnO—TiO_(2)nanocomposites in spinning disk reactor

Spinning disk reactor(SDR)has emerged as a novel process intensification photocatalytic reactor,and it has higher mass transfer efficiency and photon utilization for the degradation of toxic organic pollutants by advanced oxidation processes(AOPs).In this study,ZnO—TiO_(2)nanocomposites were prepared by solgel method,and coated on the disk of SDR by impregnation-pull-drying-calcination method.The performance of catalyst was characterized by X-ray diffraction,scanning electron microscope,X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy,photoluminescence and ultraviolet—visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy.Photocatalytic ozonation in SDR was used to remove phenol,and various factors on degradation effect were studied in detail.The results showed that the rate of degradation and mineralization reached 100%and 83.4%under UV light irradiation after 50 min,compared with photocatalysis and ozonation,the removal rate increased by 69.3%and 34.7%,and mineralization rate increased by 56.7%and 62.9%,which indicated that the coupling of photocatalysis and ozonation had a synergistic effect.The radical capture experiments demonstrated that the active species such as photogenerated holes(h^(+)),hydroxyl radicals(·OH),superoxide radical(·O_(2)-)were responsible for phenol degradation,and·OH played a leading role in the degradation process,while h+and·O_(2)^(-)played a non-leading role.

Control system design for a pressure-tube-type supercritical water-cooled nuclear reactor via a higher order sliding mode method

Nuclear power plants exhibit non-linear and time-variable dynamics.Therefore,designing a control system that sets the reactor power and forces it to follow the desired load is complicated.A supercritical water reactor(SCWR)is a fourth-generation conceptual reactor.In an SCWR,the non-linear dynamics of the reactor require a controller capable of control-ling the nonlinearities.In this study,a pressure-tube-type SCWR was controlled during reactor power maneuvering with a higher order sliding mode,and the reactor outgoing steam temperature and pressure were controlled simultaneously.In an SCWR,the temperature,pressure,and power must be maintained at a setpoint(desired value)during power maneuvering.Reactor point kinetics equations with three groups of delayed neutrons were used in the simulation.Higher-order and classic sliding mode controllers were separately manufactured to control the plant and were compared with the PI controllers speci-fied in previous studies.The controlled parameters were reactor power,steam temperature,and pressure.Notably,for these parameters,the PI controller had certain instabilities in the presence of disturbances.The classic sliding mode controller had a higher accuracy and stability;however its main drawback was the chattering phenomenon.HOSMC was highly accurate and stable and had a small computational cost.In reality,it followed the desired values without oscillations and chattering.

From Chooz to the Ling'ao NPP:The Technology Transfer of Pressurized Water Reactor Technology from France to China

The transfer of pressurized water reactor(PWR)technology from France to China is an important event in the history of Sino-French scientific and technological relations.China has gradually achieved self-reliance in the field of PWR technology through the introduction and subsequent absorption of France's 900 MW reactors.Compared with the process of introducing and absorbing similar technology from the United States by France,China's experience has been more complicated.This circumstance reflects the differences in the nuclear power technology systems between the two countries.France's industrial strength and early acquisition of nuclear power technology laid a solid foundation for mastering PWR technology.On the other hand,although China established a weak foundation through the implementation of the"728 Project,"and tried hard to negotiate with France,the substantive content of the technology transfer was very limited.By way of the policy transition from"unhooking of technology and trade"to"integration of technology and trade,"China ultimately accomplished the absorption and innovation of PWR technology through the Ling'ao NPP.

基于Reactor模型的列车车载安全计算机网络通信系统优化研究

为满足列车网络数据传输的高实时性要求,探讨从车载安全计算机网络通信系统软件层面对数据传输的实时性进行优化。基于Reactor模型,利用操作系统的I/O多路复用机制,将车载安全计算机网络通信系统中的I/O事件、定时事件、信号事件的调用接口进行融合统一,简化应用层调用的复杂度;使用带有优先级的事件队列存储已激活事件,根据已激活事件的优先级动态调整线程池中工作线程的优先级,利用强实时操作系统的任务优先级抢占调度策略保证高优先级事件被优先执行;设计一种线程池水位动态扩容机制,保证高优先级事件始终被优先处理,避免出现事件优先级反转;设计一种线程池水位动态减少机制,高效管理线程池容量,避免出现线程池容量偏大浪费系统资源,或线程池容量偏小导致增加重复创建线程开销。

Different efficiency toward the biomimetic aerobic oxidation of benzyl alcohol in microchannel and bubble column reactors: Hydrodynamic characteristics and gas–liquid mass transfer

The selective aerobic oxidation of benzyl alcohol to benzaldehyde has attracted considerable attention because benzaldehyde is a high value-added product. The rate of this typical gas–liquid reaction is significantly affected by mass transfer. In this study, CoTPP-mediated(CoTPP: cobalt(II) mesotetraphenylporphyrin) selective benzyl alcohol oxidation with oxygen was conducted in a membrane microchannel(MMC) reactor and a bubble column(BC) reactor, respectively. We observed that 83% benzyl alcohol was converted within 6.5 min in the MMC reactor, but only less than 10% benzyl alcohol was converted in the BC reactor. Hydrodynamic characteristics and gas–liquid mass transfer performances were compared for the MMC and BC reactors. The MMC reactor was assumed to be a plug flow reactor,and the dimensionless variance was 0.29. Compared to the BC reactor, the gas–liquid mass transfer was intensified significantly in MMC reactor. It could be ascribed to the high gas holdup(2.9 times higher than that of BC reactor), liquid film mass transfer coefficient(8.2 times higher than that of BC reactor), and mass transfer coefficient per unit interfacial area(3.8 times higher than that of BC reactor). Moreover,the Hatta number for the MMC reactor reached up to 0.61, which was about 15 times higher than that of the BC reactor. The computational fluid dynamics calculations for mass fractions in both liquid and gas phases were consistent with the experimental data.

Impacts of solid physical properties on the performances of a slurry external airlift loop reactor integrating mixing and separation

Solid physical properties are vital for the design, optimization, and scale-up of gas–liquid–solid multiphase reactors. The complex and interactional effects of the solid physical properties, including particle diameter, density, wettability, and sphericity, on the hydrodynamic behaviors in a new external airlift loop reactor(EALR) integrating mixing and separation are decoupled in this work. Two semi-empirical equations are proposed and validated to predict the overall gas holdup and liquid circulating velocity satisfactorily, and then the individual influence of such solid physical properties is further investigated. The results demonstrate that both the overall gas holdup in the riser and the liquid circulating velocity in the downcomer increase with the contact angle, but decrease with particle size, density, and sphericity.Additionally, the impact of the particle size on the liquid circulating velocity is also profoundly revealed on a micro-level considering the particle size distribution. Moreover, the axial solid concentration distribution is discussed, and the uniformity of the slurry is described by the mixing index of the solid particles. The results show that a more homogeneous mixture can be achieved by adding finer particles other than attaining violent turbulence. Therefore, this work lays a foundation for the design, scale-up, and industrialization of the EALRs.