Experimental Technical Bases for Evaluating Vapor/Steam Explosions in Nuclear Reactor Safety

Vapor/steam explosions are important considerations for a safety assessment where a high temperature molten mass could contact a liquid coolant. It is essential that these potential accident conditions are evaluated in a manner consistent with the available experimental technical bases. This book provides a common reference for the extensive experimental data base that has been accumulated due to the substantial works of industrial, national, and university laboratories throughout the world, to help all studies include the total experimental data base as well as that which directly relates to the molten materials and coolant of interest. In addition, it provides a common reference so that such evaluations can either reference this book, or consult the references given within to find the sources where further details can be obtained when needed. Lastly, the measured energy releases for key experiments are compared with straightforward bounding calculations that can be used to facilitate discussions between reactor designers, utilities, and regulatory agencies.

 

An interview with authors Robert Henry and Hans Fauske was published in Nuclear News. The full interview is available here: http://cdn.ans.org/pubs/docs/aug_vapo_steam_article.pdf