Method of out-of-pile high-temperature tests of low-melting materials in conditions of modeling a severe nuclear reactor accident

Abstract

This article is devoted to the technique for conducting experiments to study the nature of the interaction of low-melting metals with corium in the conditions of simulating a severe nuclear reactor accident. A feature of such experiments is the need to ensure thermophysical conditions for the occurrence of a severe accident and the organization of the interaction of the metals under study with liquid corium after its obtaining. In this regard, special device for solid metal fragments discharging into liquid corium were designed and manufactured to provide such conditions. At the same time, modeling of the temperature field of the experimental assembly of the VCG-135 test bench to study the interaction between model corium and candidate metal-coolers in the conditions of a severe accident was conducted. The need for modeling is associated with to the probability of metal melting in the discharge device due to the heat flow from the heating crucible of the experimental assembly. The operability of the developed technique was shown as a result of modeling and subsequent experiments at the VCG-135 test bench. The experiments made it possible to obtain products of the interaction of metals with corium for further study of their structural and phase state.