Power-Cooling Mismatch Test series. Test PCM-1, Quick Look Report

The Power-Cooling-Mismatch (PCM) Test, PCM-1 was conducted on March 30, 1978 in the Power Burst Facility at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory. The test was the eighth test in the series of PCM tests designed to characterize the behavior of nuclear fuel rods operating under various combinations of lower than normal coolant flow and higher than normal rod power. The PCM-1 test consisted of a single PWR designed fuel rod containing a 0.91 m long stack of unirradiated UO/sub 2/ fuel pellets. The objective of the test was to simulate a severe PCM incident leading to fuel rod failure at power with sufficient molten fuel present within the rod to produce a high probability of molten fuel-coolant interaction (MFCI) when failure occurred. 14 figs.