A numerical analysis of spent nuclear fuel thermal characteristics

A numerical analysis is presented comparing the thermal behavior of a spent boiling water reactor fuel pin and an electric heating element intended to simulate the fuel pin in an experimental model. The analysis includes thermal environments expected during normal and extraordinary fuel transport conditions. The response of the fuel pin is demonstrated to be strongly dependent on the surrounding temperature conditions and to a lesser extent on rod decay power and surface emissivity. Additionally, a heater rod design employing a stainless steel clad material of approximately the same thickness of actual fuel element cladding is shown to provide an acceptable representation of the fuel pin thermal response under typical transport conditions