Thermohydraulic Performance in SMR Reactors with Mixed Oxide (U, Th)O2 Fuel: A Computational Approach
This paper presents a computational study on the thermohydraulic performance of subchannels within Small Modular Reactor (SMR) configurations using Mixed Oxide (MOX) fuels comprising (U, Th)O2 alongside subchannels containing conventional UO2. The research aims to evaluate these fuel types operation...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Brazilian Radiation Protection Society (Sociedade Brasileira de Proteção Radiológica, SBPR)
2025-04-01
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| Series: | Brazilian Journal of Radiation Sciences |
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| Online Access: | https://bjrs.org.br/revista/index.php/REVISTA/article/view/2674 |
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| author | Pedro Emanuel Moraes Santos Mariana Cecilia Betancourt Leorlen Yunier Rojas Mazaira Carlos Rafael García Hernández Dany Sanchez Dominguez Carlos Alberto Brayner de Oliveira Lira |
| author_facet | Pedro Emanuel Moraes Santos Mariana Cecilia Betancourt Leorlen Yunier Rojas Mazaira Carlos Rafael García Hernández Dany Sanchez Dominguez Carlos Alberto Brayner de Oliveira Lira |
| author_sort | Pedro Emanuel Moraes Santos |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This paper presents a computational study on the thermohydraulic performance of subchannels within Small Modular Reactor (SMR) configurations using Mixed Oxide (MOX) fuels comprising (U, Th)O2 alongside subchannels containing conventional UO2. The research aims to evaluate these fuel types operational efficiency and safety within the context of small-scale reactors. Utilizing a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model implemented in OpenFOAM, this study considers the variability of the thermophysical properties of the materials as influenced by temperature changes. The findings reveal that MOX fuels exhibit lower maximum temperatures than UO2, suggesting a more uniform radial temperature distribution. Moreover, both the cladding and coolant temperatures remain within safe operational limits across all scenarios examined, highlighting the potential of MOX fuels to enhance the safety and efficiency of SMRs. This analysis advances our understanding of the thermal behavior of advanced fuel compositions in nuclear reactors. It underscores the importance of comprehensive thermohydraulic studies in the design and operation of next-generation nuclear power systems.
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| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-2bbc391d4cb445b79e90d535db2ecbfc |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2319-0612 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | Brazilian Radiation Protection Society (Sociedade Brasileira de Proteção Radiológica, SBPR) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Brazilian Journal of Radiation Sciences |
| spelling | doaj-art-2bbc391d4cb445b79e90d535db2ecbfc2025-08-20T03:12:31ZengBrazilian Radiation Protection Society (Sociedade Brasileira de Proteção Radiológica, SBPR)Brazilian Journal of Radiation Sciences2319-06122025-04-01124B (Suppl.)10.15392/2319-0612.2024.26742299Thermohydraulic Performance in SMR Reactors with Mixed Oxide (U, Th)O2 Fuel: A Computational ApproachPedro Emanuel Moraes Santos0Mariana Cecilia Betancourt1Leorlen Yunier Rojas Mazaira2Carlos Rafael García Hernández3Dany Sanchez Dominguez4Carlos Alberto Brayner de Oliveira Lira5Universidade Federal de Pernambuco - UFPEUniversidade Federal de Pernambuco - UFPEUniversidade Federal de Pernambuco - UFPEInstituto Superior de Tecnologías y Ciencias Aplicadas - InSTECUniversidade Estadual de Santa Cruz - UESCCentro Regional de Ciências Nucleares do Nordeste - CRCN-NEThis paper presents a computational study on the thermohydraulic performance of subchannels within Small Modular Reactor (SMR) configurations using Mixed Oxide (MOX) fuels comprising (U, Th)O2 alongside subchannels containing conventional UO2. The research aims to evaluate these fuel types operational efficiency and safety within the context of small-scale reactors. Utilizing a Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model implemented in OpenFOAM, this study considers the variability of the thermophysical properties of the materials as influenced by temperature changes. The findings reveal that MOX fuels exhibit lower maximum temperatures than UO2, suggesting a more uniform radial temperature distribution. Moreover, both the cladding and coolant temperatures remain within safe operational limits across all scenarios examined, highlighting the potential of MOX fuels to enhance the safety and efficiency of SMRs. This analysis advances our understanding of the thermal behavior of advanced fuel compositions in nuclear reactors. It underscores the importance of comprehensive thermohydraulic studies in the design and operation of next-generation nuclear power systems. https://bjrs.org.br/revista/index.php/REVISTA/article/view/2674CFDSMRMOX |
| spellingShingle | Pedro Emanuel Moraes Santos Mariana Cecilia Betancourt Leorlen Yunier Rojas Mazaira Carlos Rafael García Hernández Dany Sanchez Dominguez Carlos Alberto Brayner de Oliveira Lira Thermohydraulic Performance in SMR Reactors with Mixed Oxide (U, Th)O2 Fuel: A Computational Approach Brazilian Journal of Radiation Sciences CFD SMR MOX |
| title | Thermohydraulic Performance in SMR Reactors with Mixed Oxide (U, Th)O2 Fuel: A Computational Approach |
| title_full | Thermohydraulic Performance in SMR Reactors with Mixed Oxide (U, Th)O2 Fuel: A Computational Approach |
| title_fullStr | Thermohydraulic Performance in SMR Reactors with Mixed Oxide (U, Th)O2 Fuel: A Computational Approach |
| title_full_unstemmed | Thermohydraulic Performance in SMR Reactors with Mixed Oxide (U, Th)O2 Fuel: A Computational Approach |
| title_short | Thermohydraulic Performance in SMR Reactors with Mixed Oxide (U, Th)O2 Fuel: A Computational Approach |
| title_sort | thermohydraulic performance in smr reactors with mixed oxide u th o2 fuel a computational approach |
| topic | CFD SMR MOX |
| url | https://bjrs.org.br/revista/index.php/REVISTA/article/view/2674 |
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