Large eddy simulation in pebble bed gas cooled core reactors

A high temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) is one of the renewed reactor designs to play a role in nuclear power generation. This reactor design concept is currently under consideration and development worldwide. The combination of coated particle fuel, inert helium gas as coolant and graphite moderated reactor makes possible to operate at high temperature yielding a high efficiency. In this study the simulation of turbulent transport for the gas through the gaps of the spherical fuel elements (fuel pebbles) was performed using the large eddy simulation. This would help in understanding the highly three-dimensional, complex flow phenomena caused by flow curvature in the pebble bed. Resolving all the scales of a turbulent flow is too costly, while employing highly empirical turbulence models to complex problems could give inaccurate simulation results. The large eddy simulation (LES) method would overcome these shortcomings. An attempt to obtain experimental velocity flow patterns using particle image velocimetry technique combined with matched refractive index liquid was pursued. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.