Thermal-hydraulics numerical analyses of Pebble Bed Advanced High Temperature Reactor hot channel

Background: The thermal hydraulics behavior of the Pebble Bed Advanced High Temperature Reactor (PB-AHTR) hot channel was studied. Purpose: We aim to analyze the thermal-hydraulics behavior of the PB-AHTR, such as pressure drop, temperature distribution of coolant and pebble bed as well as thermal removal capacity in the condition of loss of partial coolant. Methods: We used a modified FLUENT code which was coupled with a local non-equilibrium porous media model by introducing a User Defined Scalar (UDS) in the calculation domain of the reactor core and subjoining different resistance terms (Ergun and KTA) to calculate the temperature of coolant, solid phase of pebble bed and pebble center in the core. Results: Computational results showed that the resistance factor has great influence on pressure drop and velocity distribution, but less impact on the temperature of coolant, solid phase of pebble bed and pebble center. We also confirmed the heat removal capacity of the PB-AHTR in the condition of nominal and loss of partial coolant conditions. Conclusion: The numerical analyses results can provide a useful proposal to optimize the design of PB-AHTR. (authors)