Integral effect test on station blackout (SBO) scenario with steam generator tube rupture (SGTR) in ATLAS facility

Highlights: • A station blackout with a steam generator tube rupture was investigated in ATLAS. • The multiple failure accident can be mitigated by the auxiliary feedwater supply. • Sensitivity analysis showed a possibility of core damage in multiple tube rupture. - Abstract: Station blackout (SBO) is one of the most important design extension conditions (DECs) because a total loss of the heat sink leads to a core uncovery or damage without any proper operator action. During a long transient of an SBO, a steam generator tube rupture (SGTR) accident can occur when a steam generator tube is exposed to a superheated steam flow. In this study, a prolonged SBO with an SGTR occurrence was experimentally investigated by performing an integral effect test with the ATLAS facility. For the transient simulation, the tube rupture was simulated when the core water level became below the top of the active core. As an accident management measure, the auxiliary feedwater was supplied to the intact steam generator when the maximum heater surface temperature started to show an excursion behavior. The experimental results showed that a single tube rupture could not sufficiently reduce the primary system pressure before the injection of the auxiliary feedwater. A delayed supply of the auxiliary feedwater after an excursion of the heater surface temperature successfully cooled the primary system until the end of the transient, where inflow of the coolant from the pressurizer contributed to a recovery of the coolant inventory in the core. The natural circulation flow characteristics in the primary system showed an oscillating behavior depending on the heat removal rate of the steam generators. This integral effect test data can be used to evaluate the prediction capability of safety analysis codes and identify code deficiencies in predicting an SBO transient with an SGTR occurrence.