Large Eddy and Interface Simulation (LEIS) of liquid entrainment in turbulent stratified flow

Dryout of the liquid film on the fuel rods in BWR fuel assemblies leads to an abrupt decrease in heat transfer coefficient and can result in fuel failure. The process of mechanical mass transfer from the continuous liquid field into the continuous vapor field along the liquid-vapor interface is called entrainment and is the dominant depletion mechanism for the liquid film in annular flow. Using interface tracking methods combined with a Large Eddy Simulation approach, implemented in the Computational Multi-Fluid Dynamics (CMFD) code TransAT®, we are studying entrainment phenomena in BWR fuel assemblies. In this paper we report on the CMFD simulation approaches and the current validation effort for the code. (author)