Abstract
Abstract The combination of boric acid and corresponding buffer agents is used in light water nuclear reactors to control the neutron population in both normal operation and emergency core cooling. Therefore, it is extremely important to characterize the rheological properties of these cooling solutions at the concentrations specific to nuclear systems. In this research, we measured the viscosities of boric acid solutions buffered with Trisodium Phosphate or NaOH as a function of concentration (16-610 g/l) and temperature (22-100 °C). Moreover, in order to monitor the effect of low concentration of fibrous debris on the viscosity, we produced the debris samples downstream of a sump screen using a horizontal flow loop facility. The present measurements revealed that both buffered and fibrous-debris-loaded boric acid solutions behave like Newtonian fluid and their viscosities are strong functions of temperature and concentration at the studied conditions. For the given concentration of the fibrous debris, no significant effect of the fibrous debris on the coolant viscosity was found.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Article number | 2138 |
| Pages (from-to) | 239-253 |
| Number of pages | 15 |
| Journal | Progress in Nuclear Energy |
| Volume | 85 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jul 2 2015 |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Nuclear Energy and Engineering
- Safety, Risk, Reliability and Quality
- Energy Engineering and Power Technology
- Waste Management and Disposal