Kinetics of Iodine and Cesium Reactions in the CANDU Reactor Primary Heat Transport System under Accident Conditions

摘要

Gas-phase reaction kinetics have been modelled for the release of cesium and iodine into steam and steam/hydrogen atmospheres. The conditions are those anticipated in a CANDU reactor fuel channel following some postulated loss-of-coolant accidents. A total of seventeen chemical species were used in the model, including all important cesium and iodine species. Reaction rate constants were taken from the literature, or calculated where possible, or estimated. The composition evolution of the system was calculated, following a burst release of cesium and iodine, as a function of total iodine and cesium concentrations, cesium/iodine release ratio, iodine release form (atomic I or CsI), fuel channel atmosphere, and radiolysis effects. In general, the calculation demonstrates that CsI and CsOH rapidly (