CFD benchmark of flat plate fuel assembly

Abstract

Diversification of the nuclear fuel suppliers is an inseparable component of nuclear safety of power and research nuclear reactors. So far, the Czech research reactor LVR-15 has been operated with the Russian fuel IRT-4M, because there was no alternative to this fuel. Recently, the French company CERCA has developed an alternative to this fuel Flat Plate Fuel Assembly (FPFA). Hence, the influence of the different fuel characteristics (especially neutronic, thermomechanic and hydraulic) on nuclear safety has to be provided. This work involves a comparison of the flow characteristic of these two types of fuel assemblies using the ANSYS Fluent 2021 R1 and STAR CCM+ 2022 CFD programs. Moreover, these computational models of FPFA fuel are validated in an experimental facility.