Containment code developmental verification at INEL

Significant accomplishments have been made at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) in recent years in the development of digital computer codes which predict the response of nuclear reactor containment systems to postulated reactor accidents. Many containment designs have been based primarily on results of analytical model calculations made with these or related codes. One current area of increased interest to INEL code development personnel is the verification of computational models through comparison of code calculations with experimental results. This interest has developed in large measure due to the establishment of world wide experimental research programs generating experimental data through containment response experiments. Verification, as applied to containment code development is the process of comparing results of code calculations with experimental results to assure that code generated predictions are sufficiently accurate to be used for reactor containment safety evaluations. As such, the development verification effort depends heavily upon the availability of accurate experimental data. This presentation describes a current effort by INEL code development personnel to assemble, evaluate and catalogue experimental data for verification use. An account is presented of the use of available INEL containment codes in support of this effort. A brief description is included of the experimental programs and of the analytical codes used. Although the codes were used to perform analyses for which they were not precisely designed, the results demonstrate code flexibility concomitant with facilitating data evaluation. This task enabled model development personnel to acquire increased familiarity with experimental programs and with operational codes in preparation for future verification support of advanced containment code development