IDAHO NATIONAL LABORATORY PROGRAM TO OBTAIN BENCHMARK DATA ON THE FLOW PHENOMENA IN A SCALED MODEL OF A PRISMATIC GAS-COOLED REACTOR LOWER PLENUM FOR THE VALIDATION OF CFD CODES

The experimental program that is being conducted at the Matched Index-of-Refraction (MIR) Flow Facility at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) to obtain benchmark data on measurements of flow phenomena in a scaled model of a typical prismatic gas-cooled (GCR) reactor lower plenum using 3-D Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) is presented. A detailed description of the model, scaling, the experimental facility, 3-D PIV system, measurement uncertainties and analysis, experimental procedures and samples of the data sets that have been obtained are included. Samples of the data set that are presented include mean-velocity-field and turbulence data in an approximately 1:7 scale model of a region of the lower plenum of a typical prismatic GCR design. This experiment has been selected as the first Standard Problem endorsed by the Generation IV International Forum. Results concentrate on the region of the lower plenum near its far reflector wall (away from the outlet duct). Inlet jet Reynolds numbers (based on the jet diameter and the time-mean average flow rate) are approximately 4,300 and 12,400. The measurements reveal undeveloped, non-uniform flow in the inlet jets and complicated flow patterns in the model lower plenum. Data include three-dimensional vector plots, data displays along the coordinate planes (slices) and charts that describe the component flows at specific regions in the model. Information on inlet flow is also presented.