OECD/NEA Steam Explosion Resolution for Nuclear Applications (SERENA) Project

The NEA Co-ordinated Programme on Steam Explosion Resolution for Nuclear Applications (SERENA) was established to assess the capabilities of the current generation of fuel-coolant interaction (FCI) computer codes to predict steam explosion-induced loads in reactor situations. One of the main findings of this programme was that in-vessel FCI would not challenge the integrity of the nuclear reactor containment but that this scenario could not be ruled out for ex-vessel FCI.

The OECD/NEA SERENA Joint Project has therefore been set up to resolve any uncertainties on these issues. It is planned to achieve this by performing a limited number of focused tests with advanced instrumentation to examine a large spectrum of ex-vessel melt compositions and conditions. In parallel, analytical work will be carried out to bring the code capabilities to a sufficient level that they may be used in reactor case analyses. The objective of the experimental programme is threefold:

• Provide experimental data to clarify the explosion behaviour of prototypic corium melts;
• Provide experimental data for the validation of explosion models for prototypic materials, including spatial distribution of fuel and void during the premixing, at the time of explosion and explosion dynamics;
• Provide experimental data for the steam explosion in more reactor-like situations to verify the geometrical extrapolation capabilities of the codes.

These goals will be achieved by using the complementary features of the TROI (KAERI) and KROTOS (CEA) corium facilities, including fitness-for-purpose oriented analytical activities. KROTOS is more suited for investigating the intrinsic FCI characteristics in a one-dimensional geometry. TROI is more suited for testing the FCI behaviour of these materials in reactor-like conditions by having more mass and multi-dimensional melt water interaction geometry. The validation of models using KROTOS data and the verification of code capabilities to calculate more reactor-oriented situations simulated in TROI will strengthen confidence in code applicability to reactor FCI scenarios. The overall programme will be discussed throughout 2008, including ways to support the experimental projects with analyses and code assessments.

Project participants

Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Japan, Republic of Korea, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, United States.

Project period

2007-2010

Budget

€2.6 million

Publications

D. Paladino, R. Zboray and P. Benz, Horizontal Jets Impinging on the Vertical Wall of a Containment Compartment, Paper 7357, 2007 International Congress on Advances in Nuclear Power Plants (ICAPP'07), Nice, France, 13-18 May 2007.

D. Paladino, R. Zboray, P. Benz and M. Andreani, Three gas mixture plume inducing mixing and stratification in a multi compartment containment, Paper 195, Proceedings of NURETH-12, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, 30 September-4 October 2007.

Related links

• Overview of Joint Projects
  

• NEA Nuclear Safety Programme
  

• NEA contact: Jean Gauvain (jean.gauvain@oecd.org)

Last updated: 25 June 2008