Session: 04-06: SMRs, Advanced Reactors and Fusion

Paper Number: 135237

135237 - Generative Design of a Gas-Cooled Micro Reactor Based on Multi-Physics Analysis 

Abstract: 

Additive manufacturing (AM) is a "game-changing" digital fabrication technology that can fundamentally alter the way products are designed and manufactured. In nuclear engineering, the application of additive manufacturing can enable advanced reactor designs with better performance, lower cost, and quicker deployment. To exploit the maximum potential of additive manufacturing, design for additive manufacturing (DfAM) is needed, DfAM can leverage the complexity freedom offered by additive manufacturing technology to break traditional design constraints and achieve enhanced performance. Generative design, one of the key technologies in DfAM, is an iterative exploration method using AI-driven algorithms to generate a series of design solutions that meet specified constraints.

In this work, a generative design platform for micro-reactors is developed based on DASSULT SIMULIA Isight, and a 4 MW_th gas-cooled micro reactor is designed with the generative design method. The micro reactor concept includes 3D-printing silicon carbide (SiC) matrix embedded with tri-structural isotropic (TRISO) particle fuel. The UN-TRISO particle positions are generated with discrete element method (DEM). Helium at 3 MPa is chosen as the coolant, and the coolant channels are distributed within the matrix to remove the heat generated by fission. The design lifetime of this reactor is 1000 EFPD (Effective Full Power Days).

To simulate and analyze the multi-physics performance of the reactor design, various multi-physics simulation codes are integrated on this generative design platform, including RMC for neutron physics analysis, ANSYS Fluent for computational fluid dynamics analysis, and ANSYS Mechanical for structural mechanics analysis. The RMC, a reactor Monte Carlo code developed by Reactor Engineering Analysis Lab (REAL) of Tsinghua University, is used for neutron transport calculations to obtain effective multiplication factor, power distribution, and burn-up history. ANSYS Fluent is used to simulate the flow and heat transfer in coolant channels as well as thermal conduction in the silicon carbide matrix and TRISO particle fuel. ANSYS Mechanical is used to analyze the thermal stress, strain and expansion in the matrix and fuel to ensure the structural safety. A multi-objective optimization method is used to explore geometric parameters and fuel configurations to achieve better neutronics, thermal-hydraulics, and structural mechanics performance.

The preliminary results demonstrate that compared to traditional heuristic designs, the generative design concept enjoys superior comprehensive performance. The power peaking factor FQ decrease below 1.5, the heat transfer area increases by 20% and the fuel peak temperature decrease by more than 120 K, while ensuring burn-up lifetime and structural safety, and also saving on fuel loads.

Presenting Author: Wenbin Han Tsinghu University

Presenting Author Biography: PhD student of Tsinghua University, research in Advanced Nuclear Reactor Concepts.

Authors:

Wenbin Han Tsinghu University
Qi Lu Nuclear Power Institute of China
Jian Deng Nuclear Power Institute of China
Shanfang Huang Tsinghua University