A Study on Onset of Liquid Entrainment in Low Pressure Depressurization System of Advanced Passive Pressurized Water Reactors

The low-pressure depressurization system (LPDS) of advanced passive pressurized water reactors (PWRs) is designed to provide depressurization of the reactor coolant system during a small break loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA). The liquid entrainment to the LPDS is important for the safety case of the advanced passive PWRs due to the significant increase of the pressure loss and the depressurization rate versus mass loss characteristics. The existing experimental researches on the liquid entrainment at LPDS have been reviewed, and the intermittent entrainment mechanism and the continuous entrainment mechanism are identified. The intermittent entrainment is closely related to the flow regime transition from the horizontal stratified flow to the intermittent flow in the hot leg where the LPDS port is located. The horizontal stratification model previously developed for the FULL SPECTRUM LOCA evaluation model has been assessed against the entrainment onset data in the available LPDS entrainment experiments, i.e., the ATLATS air–water experiment, the ADETEL air–water and steam–water experiments, and the full-scale FATE air–water experiment. The prediction matches the measure data well especially in the full-scale FATE experiments. The comparison results also confirmed the scalability of the horizontal stratification model with the applicability of the horizontal stratification criterion to the full-scale PWR condition. The uncertainty factors that impact the depressurization system entrainment onset are discussed for the future improvements. This work provides the direction to accurately model the entrainment onset for LPDS and improve the simulation of LOCA in advanced passive PWRs.