MODELLING 3-D MECHANICAL PHENOMENA IN A 1-D INDUSTRIAL FINITE ELEMENT CODE: RESULTS AND PERSPECTIVES

摘要

Assessing fuel rod integrity in PWR reactors must enjoin two opposite goals: a one-dimensional finite element code (axial revolution symmetry) is needed to provide industrial results at the scale of the reactor core, while the main risk of cladding failure [e.g. pellet-cladding interaction (PCI)] is based on fully three-dimensional phenomena. First, parametric three-dimensional elastic calculations were performed to identify the relevant parameters (fragment number, contact pellet-cladding conditions, etc.) as regards PCI. Axial fragment number as well as friction coefficient are shown to play a major role in PCI as opposed to other parameters. Next, the main limitations of the one-dimensional hypothesis of the finite element code CYRANO3 are identified. To overcome these limitations, both two- and three-dimensional emulations of CYRANO3 were developed. These developments are shown to significantly improve the results provided by CYRANO3.