Page 134 - Thermal Hydraulics Aspects of Liquid Metal Cooled Nuclear Reactors

Construction of experimental 3.3

liquid-metal facilities

J. Pacio, M. Daubner, F. Fellmoser, W. Hering, W. J€ ager,
R. Stieglitz, T. Wetzel
Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Karlsruhe, Germany

This work presents some experiences at KIT relevant to the construction of experi-
mental liquid-metal facilities. Some aspects related to their design and operation
are included, as all these aspects must be considered together in practice. Moreover,
a report of experiences in other institutions as part of this lecture series complements
this work.

3.3.1 Introduction

In practice, a distinction is usually made between two complementary pieces of exper-
imental equipment: a test facility and a test section. In this context, a test facility can be
defined as the support infrastructure required for establishing certain environmental
conditions to an experimental port, where a test section is installed for detailed
measurements.
The separation of research topics is exploited to simplify the design, favoring the
construction of several individual facilities, instead of a multipurpose one. For exam-
ple, the maximum operating temperature is selected as low as possible and as high as
necessary for a specific experimental study. Nevertheless, the facility should be con-
structed in a way that allows for certain flexibility in the test sections that can be
installed.
At KIT, several liquid-metal facilities are operated, covering different scientific
disciplines under the umbrella of four institutes (Institute for Nuclear and Energy
Technologies (IKET), Institute for Neutron Physics and Reactor Technology
(INR), Institute for Pulsed Power and Microwave Technology (IHM), and Institute
for Applied Materials-Material Process Technology (IAM-WPT)), as shown in
Fig. 3.3.1.
A wide variety of topics and fluids are observed in Fig. 3.3.1. This work is focused
on thermohydraulic investigations, with contributions from IKET and INR. Special
emphasis is placed accordingly on the characteristics of lead-bismuth eutectic
(LBE) and sodium (Na).

Thermal Hydraulics Aspects of Liquid Metal Cooled Nuclear Reactors. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-101980-1.00013-2
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