3D-thermo-structural simulation of pressure tube–calandria tube behaviour under accident conditions in PHWR using ABAQUS

In-depth understanding of the thermo-structural behaviour of structure system and components (SSCs) of a nuclear power plant is necessary for both safety margin assessment, and for devising appropriate prevention and accident mitigation strategies. In a pressurised heavy water reactor (PHWR), the fuel in the form of fuel bundles resides inside pressure tube (PT). The pressure tube is surrounded by a co-axial calandria tube (CT). The heat generated by nuclear fission in fuel bundle is carried away by heavy water coolant, which flows inside pressure tube. The coolant is at high temperature and high pressure inside the pressure tube. The surrounding calandria tubes are at low temperature and low pressure under normal operating conditions. Under certain accident scenario, the fuel bundles cooling may be lost. This results in heating up of the fuel bundles which leads to increase in temperature of the pressure tube. The pressure tube starts deforming as its temperature increases. The deformed pressure tube may contact the calandria tube either by sagging or ballooning. This leads to increase in the calandria tube temperature. If the temperature on the outer surface of the calandria tube exceeds the critical heat flux, film boiling may occur on the surface of the calandria tube. If the area in dry-out is sufficiently large and the dry-out is prolonged, the pressure-tube/calandria-tube combination can continue to strain radially and may challenge fuel-channel integrity. The International Collaborative Standard Problem (ICSP) on Heavy Water Reactor (HWR) Moderator Sub-cooling Requirements is organized by the IAEA to facilitate the development and validation of computer codes for the analysis of fuel channel integrity. The objective was to assess the capability of safety analysis computer codes in predicting the associated phenomena namely; radiation heat transfer from fuel to the pressure tube (PT), from PT to calandria tube (CT) heat transfer, PT deformation or failure, CT to moderator heat transfer and CT deformation or failure. The current analysis is carried out as a part of international collaborative standard problem exercise. This work simulates the heat transfer phenomena along with resulting deformation of the pressure tube and calandria tubes in a finite element framework. The insights obtained from the detailed modelling of the structural aspects of the phenomena can be used to update the system safety analysis codes. In this paper, a coupled heat transfer and structural analysis of pressure tube -calandria tube assembly is carried out using the finite element code, ABAQUS. The heat transfer analysis implements radiation heat transfer from heater to PT and from PT to CT. Contact conductance between PT-CT is modeled based on contact pressure. Convection from outer surface of CT to water is also considered. Structural analysis included three cases elastic–creep, elasto-plastic and elasto-plastic with creep of the individual PT-CT assembly under thermal and mechanical loading. It is observed that the results matched well for the case where only elastic creep constitutive model was considered. The temperature variation of pressure tube and calandria tube along with resulting deformation is obtained. The simulation is able to capture and predict the progressive contact of PT with CT and the deformation of CT along with the PT using FEM model. It was observed during the experiment and captured in the simulation that the PT-CT assembly deformation lead to removal of heat to the moderator and channel integrity was maintained for the given moderator sub cooling margin.