Experimental Investigation of Pebble Flow Dynamics using Radioactive Particle Tracking Technique in a Scaled-Down Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR)
Abstract
The Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR) is a type of very-high-temperature reactor (VHTR) that is conceptually very similar to moving bed reactors used in the chemical and petrochemical industries. In a PBMR core, nuclear fuel is in the form of pebbles and moves slowly under the influence of gravity. In this work, an integrated experimental and computational study of granular flow in a scaled-down cold flow PBMR was performed. A continuous pebble re-circulation experimental set-up, mimicking the flow of pebbles in a PBMR was designed and developed. An experimental investigation of pebble flow dynamics in a scaled down test reactor was carried out using a non-invasive radioactive particle tracking (RPT) technique that used a cobalt-60 based tracer to mimic pebbles in terms of shape, size and density. A cross-correlation based position reconstruction algorithm and RPT calibration data were used to obtain results about Lagrangian trajectories, the velocity field, and residence time distributions. The RPT technique results a serve as a benchmark data for assessing contact force models used in the discrete element method (DEM) simulations.
Recommended Citation
V. Khane et al., "Experimental Investigation of Pebble Flow Dynamics using Radioactive Particle Tracking Technique in a Scaled-Down Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR)," Nuclear Engineering and Design, vol. 302, no. Part A, pp. 1 - 11, Elsevier, Jun 2016.
The definitive version is available at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nucengdes.2016.03.031
Department(s)
Chemical and Biochemical Engineering
Keywords and Phrases
Finite Difference Method; Flow of Solids; Fluidized Beds; Granular Materials; High Temperature Reactors; Pebble Bed Reactors; Radioactive Tracers; Radioactivity; Residence Time Distribution; Velocity; Computational Studies; Contact Force Models; Experimental Investigations; Lagrangian Trajectories; Moving Bed Reactors; Petrochemical Industry; Position Reconstruction; Radioactive Particle Tracking; Pebble Bed Modular Reactors
International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
0029-5493
Document Type
Article - Journal
Document Version
Citation
File Type
text
Language(s)
English
Rights
© 2016 Elsevier, All rights reserved.
Publication Date
01 Jun 2016
Comments
The authors acknowledge the financial support provided by Department of Energy (DOE) Nuclear Energy Research Initiative (NERI) project (NERI-08-043).