Comparisons of 2-D and 3-D IVR Experiments for Oxide Layer in the Three-Layer Configuration

Abstract We performed 3-D (3-dimensional) IVR (In-Vessel Retention) natural convection experiments simulating the oxide layer in the three-layer configuration, varying the aspect ratio (H/R). Mass transfer experiment was conducted based on the analogy to achieve high RaH′s of 1.99 × 1012–6.90 × 1013 with compact facilities. Comparisons with 2-D (2-dimensional) experiments revealed different local heat transfer characteristics on upper and lower boundaries of the oxide layer depending on the H/R. For the 3-D shallow oxide layer, the multi-cell flow patterns appeared and the number of cells was considerably increased with the H/R decreases, which differs with the 2-D experiments that the number of cells was independent on H/R. Thus, the enhancement of the downward heat transfer and the mitigation of the focusing effect were more noticeable in the 3-D experiments.