Boundary effects on Zircaloy-4 cladding deformation in LOCA simulation tests

Deformation behavior of Zircaloy-4 cladding under simulated loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA) conditions is being investigated in the Multirod Burst Test (MRBT) program in single rod and multirod tests. In these tests, internally-pressurized unirradiated Zircaloy-4 tubes containing internal electrical heaters are heated to failure in a low-pressure, superheated-steam environment (200 < Re < 800). The results provide a data base for evaluating deformation and blockage models employed with design-basis accident sequences to assess LWR core coolability for licensing purposes. Results of a recent 8 X 8 test indicate that models derived from smaller test arrays may not be representative of the behavior in large arrays, particularly for those temperature ranges in which large deformation can be expected. Two MRBT LOCA simulation tests conducted under the same nominal conditions (approx. 10 K/s heating rate from approx. 3400C to failure at approx. 7700C) were examined to determine the effects of array size and boundary conditions on deformation