Natural Circulation of Lead-Bismuth in a One-Dimensional Loop: Experiments and Code Predictions

The paper summarizes the results obtained by an experimental and computational study jointly performed by ENEA and University of Pisa. The study is aimed at assessing the capabilities of an available thermal-hydraulic system code in simulating natural circulation in a loop in which the working fluid is the eutectic lead-bismuth alloy as in the Italian proposal for Accelerator Driven System (ADS) reactor concepts. Experiments were performed in the CHEOPE facility installed at the ENEA Brasimone Research Centre and pre- and post-test calculations were run using a version of the RELAP5/Mod.3.2, purposely modified to account for Pb-Bi liquid alloy properties and behavior. The main results obtained by the experimental tests and by the code analyses are presented in the paper providing material to discuss the present predictive capabilities of transient and steady-state behavior in liquid Pb-Bi systems.