Results of A Loss of Pressure Control in A Pressurized Water Reactor
When pressure control is lost in a reactor plant, depending on the level of heat being generated by the reactor plant, the heat being removed by the steam or other auxiliary systems, the initial pressure, and the normal operating temperature of the plant, it could take minutes or even hours for operators to see significant trends in core behaviour.
For whatever power level the reactor is currently operating at, a certain amount of enthalpy is present in the coolant. This enthalpy is proportional to temperature, therefore, the hotter the plant, the higher the pressure must be maintained to prevent boiling. When pressure drops to the saturation point, dryout in the coolant channels will occur.
As the reactor heats the water flowing through coolant channels, subcooled nucleate boiling takes place, in which some of the water becomes small bubbles of steam on the cladding of the fuel rods. These are then stripped from the fuel cladding and into the coolant channel by the flow of water. Normally, these bubbles collapse in the channel, transferring enthalpy to the surrounding coolant. When the pressure is below the saturation pressure for the given temperature, the bubbles will not collapse. As more bubbles accumulate in the channel and combine, the steam space within the channel becomes larger and larger until steam blankets the fuel cell walls. Once the fuel cell walls are blanketed with steam, the rate of heat transfer lowers significantly. Heat is not transferred out of the fuel rods as fast as it is being generated, potentially causing a nuclear meltdown. Because of this potential, all nuclear power plants have reactor protection systems that automatically shut down the reactor if the pressure in the primary circuit falls below a safe level, or if the subcooling margin falls below a safe level. Once the reactor is shut down, the rate at which residual heat is generated in the fuel rods is similar to that of an electric kettle, and the fuel rods can be safely cooled just by being submerged in water at normal atmospheric pressure.
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