Simulation of Core Melt Pool Formation in a Reactor Pressure Vessel Lower Head Using an Effective Convectivity Model (original) (raw)

The Effective Convectivity Model (ECM) has been developed to analyze core melt pool formation in the lower plenum of Light Water Reactors (LWRs) during severe accidents. This study extends the ECM by addressing phase-change dynamics and incorporates a new Phase-change ECM (PECM), validated against experimental and CFD data. Results demonstrate PECM's efficacy in modeling heat transfer and convective behavior in complex reactor geometries, contributing to improved safety evaluations in nuclear reactor operations.