Effect of loop seal on reflood phenomena in PWR

The blockage of the primary coolant loop with water filled at the crossover legs, denoted 'loop seal', is expected to give a significant influence on core cooling during the reflood phase of a PWR-LOCA. However, the effect of the loop seal has been little investigated. Therefore, it was studied experimentally by using Cylindrical Core Test Facility (CCTF). The loop seal was cleared in a short time (40∼60 s) after reflood initiation by pushing-off of stagnating water in the crossover legs due to steam accumulation and resultant pressure increase in the upper plenum. Although the core cooling was degraded during the loop seal period, it recovered after the loop seal clearing. The degradation of core cooling during the loop seal period is considered to be caused by the low core-inlet water flow rate and resultantly by the small volumetric fraction of water in the core. The quantitative estimation about the loop seal effect on the clad temperature was made and it was indicated that the maximum clad temperature would not exceed the allowable upper limit (1,473 K) specified in the licensing about the reactor safety even with the loop seal at the beginning of the reflood phase. (author)