Oxygen Transport in Liquid Lead Bismuth Eutectic Filled Cavity by Natural Convection Available to Purchase

This paper numerically analyzes the oxygen transport in an active oxygen controlled lead-bismuth eutectic (LBE) system. Corrosion in near wall areas and oxide-layer formations on container surfaces are included. Simulations are carried out on a simplified rectangle container. Different temperature boundary conditions are added to the container to induce pure natural-convection LBE flows. The strength of the flows is measured by the Rayleigh number (Ra). Three laminar cases: (a) heated from the bottom and cooled from the top of the container; (b) heated from the sidewalls and cooled from the top of the container; (c) one sidewall heated and the opposite wall cooled, and one fully turbulent case with one sidewall heated and the opposite sidewall cooled are selected and analyzed in detail. In each case, the characteristic velocity and oxygen diffusion time are estimated, the change of oxygen distribution with time are obtained, and the bulk concentration of oxygen and the efficiency of oxide layer formation on different liquid-solid interfaces are calculated. Based on the analysis, several conclusions are finally obtained.