The NEPTUN experiments on LOCA thermal hydraulics for tight lattice PWRs

The NEPTUN test facility at the Paul Scherrer Institute is currently being used to provide a broad data base for the validation of thermal-hydraulics codes used in predicting the reflooding behaviour of a tight-lattice PWR (light water high conversion reactor, LWHCR). The present paper gives a description of the facility and the test matrix to be covered in the experimental program. Results are presented from a number of forced-feed, bottom-reflooding experiments, comparisons being made with (a) measurements carried out earlier for standard-PWR geometry and (b) the results of a calculational benchmark exercise conducted in the framework of a Swiss/German LWHCR-development agreement. Rewetting for the tight, hexagonal-geometry (p/d=1.13) NEPTUN-III test bundle has been found to occur in all tests carried out to date, in which reasonably LWHCR-representative values for the various thermal-hydraulics parameters are used. Results of the calculational benchmark exercise have confirmed the need for further code development efforts for achieving reliable predictions of LWHCR reflooding behaviour. (author). 3 refs, 11 figs, 3 tabs