In nuclear plant piping, when the high-temperature water penetrates from main pipe, a thermal stratification interface may be formed in branch pipe with a closed end. The penetrating flow of high-temperature water is called a cavity flow. If a thermal stratification interface is formed in an elbow of vertical-horizontal branch pipes, thermal fatigue may occur by a periodic temperature fluctuation. Because high cycle thermal fatigue may have significant influence on structure integrity of pipe, it is important to evaluate the position which is called penetration depth of a cavity flow in which a thermal stratification interface is formed. In present evaluation guideline which was formulated by the Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers, applicable piping is limited only to 50 mm diameter of vertical-horizontal branch pipe. Therefore, it needs to expand the applicable diameter range of vertical-horizontal branch pipe.
In this research, 200 mm diameter piping test is conducted to confirm characteristic phenomena, and to build evaluation method of penetration depth in large diameter piping. This paper presents about modeling of evaluation method for cavity flow penetration depth in large diameter piping. First, the mass transport model at the interface of layer in natural circulation region is arranged with Reynolds number and Richardson number based on visualization and the temperature measuring result. Second, the mass transport model at a thermal stratification interface between a cavity flow domain and a natural circulation domain is built based on time variation of lithium tracer concentration. The evaluation model of cavity flow penetration depth applicable to large diameter piping is proposed by combining new mass transportation models and existing evaluation guideline. In conclusion, predictive accuracy of cavity flow penetration depth in 200 mm diameter piping became the same order as the evaluation result of 50 mm diameter piping by using present evaluation guideline.
