Experimental and analytical studies of passive shutdown heat removal from advanced LMRs [liquid metal reactors]

A facility designed and constructed to demonstrate the viability of natural convection passive heat removal systems as a key feature of innovative LMR Shutdown Heat Removal (SHR) systems is in operation at Argonne National Laboratory (ANL). This Natural Convection Shutdown Heat Removal Test Facility (NSTF) has investigated the heat transfer performance of the GE/PRISM passive design. This initial series of experiments simulates the air-side geometry of the PRISM Radiant Reactor Vessel Auxiliary Cooling System (RVACS). The NSTF operates in either a uniform heat flux mode and a uniform temperature mode at the air/guard vessel interface. Analysis of the RVACS performance data indicates excellent agreement with pretest analytical predictions. Correlation analysis presents the heat transfer data in a form suitable for use in LMR design and verification of analytical studies