A Procedure to Address the Fuel Rod Failures During LB-LOCA Transient in Atucha-2 NPP

Depending on the specific event scenario and on the purpose of the analysis, it might be required the availability of calculation methods that are not implemented in the standard system thermal hydraulic codes. This may imply the use of a dedicated fuel rod thermo-mechanical computer code. This paper provides an outline of the methodology for the analysis of the 2A LB-LOCA accident in Atucha-2 NPP and describes the procedure adopted for the use of the fuel rod thermo-mechanical code. The methodology implies the application of best estimate thermal-hydraulic, neutron physics and fuel pin performance computer codes, with the objective to verify the compliance with the specific acceptance criteria. The fuel pin performance code is applied with the main objective to evaluate the extent of cladding failures during the transient. The procedure consists of a deterministic calculation by the fuel performance code of each individual fuel rod during its lifetime and in the subsequent LB-LOCA transient calculations. The boundary and initial conditions (e.g. pin power axial profiles) are provided by core physics and three dimensional neutron kinetic coupled thermal-hydraulic system codes (RELAP5-3D©) calculations. The procedure is completed by the sensitivity calculations and the application of the probabilistic method, with the aim of a better understanding of the uncertainties involved and their technological consequences on the behavior of the fuel rods, not addressed in the current paper.