Numerical simulation of coolant mixing in a pressurized water reactor with different CFD methods based on complex meshes

The work was aimed at the numerical simulation of coolant mixing in the downcomer and the lower plenum of the Rossendorf test facility ROCOM. ROCOM is a 1:5 scaled Plexiglas model of a German pressurized water reactor allowing conductivity measurements by wire mesh sensors and velocity measurements by LDA technique. The CFD calculations were carried out with the CFD-codes CFX-4 and CFX-5. In the case of stationary mixing, the maximum value of the averaged mixing scalar at the core inlet was found in the sector below the inlet nozzle, where the tracer was injected. The comparison of a very detailed mesh (CFX-5) and a mesh with simplifications and additional physical models (CFX-4) showed, that in the referred case the use of these models are allowed. For turbulent flows CFX-4 and CFX-5 were validated in accordance with the Best Practice Guidelines and can be used in the reactor safety analysis. A better description of the mixing processes inside the RPV is the basis of a more realistic safety assessment.