Experimental research on the thermal stratification criteria and heat transfer model for the multi-holes steam ejection in IRWST of AP1000 plant

Abstract In AP1000 plant, the Automatic Depressurization System (ADS) 1–3 stages operate to discharge the high-temperature and high-pressure steam from the Reactor Coolant System (RCS) primary side to the large heat sink tank In-containment Refueling Water Storage Tank (IRWST) in accidental conditions. The key equipment’s specific shape and arrangement lead to the complicate flow and heat transfer characteristics in IRWST. In the present work, an overall scaled IRWST&ADS sparger experiment has been built up. The thermocouples matrix, flowmeters, pressure transmitters, heat flux sensors, Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) technique, and high speed camera are employed for the measurements of the key thermal and flow parameters. The local steam jets condensation phenomena as well as the overall flow and thermal behavior are investigated. The experimental results indicate that the thermal stratification phenomenon is obvious in IRWST. The criteria of Richardson Number and Stratification Number are utilized to predict and evaluate the thermal stratification extent, respectively. An improved ADS arrangement design is further proposed to reduce the thermal stratification. Moreover, the multi-holes lumped “steam condensation column” is modeled with characteristic parameters, then the steam condensation heat transfer coefficient range in chugging condensation process is estimated. The experimental results provide practical engineering application reference for the effective operation of the passive safety system in AP1000 plant.