Development of a three-dimensional model and calculation code for the packed bed simulation for safety analyses of severe reactor accidents

The computer code MEWA is used for the description of severe accident sequences in light-water reactors. During the reactor accident with core disruption the solidified core fragments are displaced into the lower plenum of the reactor pressure vessel (RPV) or in case of RPV failure into the water filled reactor sump. For the progress or cessation of the severe accident the cooling of the packed bed is of main importance. With the 3D version of the code it is possible to study spatially complex packed beds with respect to their coolability. Further extension of the MEWA code will include the optimization for the improvement of the calculation efficiency and reduction of computation time. The validation will be performed by re-calculation of experiments (for instance DEBRIS experiments at the IKE) and the comparison with results of the 2D version.