A Study on the Coolant Mixing Phenomena in the Reactor Lower Plenum

A Study on the Coolant Mixing Phenomena in the Reactor Lower Plenum

When asymmetric thermal-hydraulic conditions occur between cold legs, the core inlet temperature will be nonuniform if the coolant is not mixed perfectly in the lower plenum. These uneven core inlet conditions may induce the change in core power distribution. Thus realistic prediction of thermal mixing is important in such abnormal conditions. In this study, reactor internals, which are scaled down as to conserve the flow area ratio, are set up in the model of KORI Unit 1 with the scaling factor of 1/710 by volume and coolant temperatures are measured beneath the lower core plate. Based on experimental results, the ability of COMMIX-1B code to simulate the coolant mixing phenomena in the lower plenum is estimated. The results show that complete mixing never occurs in any conditions and the mixing pattern is characterized according to the plant type.