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Enhancement of Safety Analysis Capability for

a CANDU-6 Reactor Using RELAP-CANDU/SCAN
Coupled Code System

Manwoong Kim, Hyun-Koon Kim, Hho-Jung Kim, Su Hyon Hwang, In Seob

Hong & Chang Hyo Kim

To cite this article: Manwoong Kim, Hyun-Koon Kim, Hho-Jung Kim, Su Hyon Hwang, In Seob
Hong & Chang Hyo Kim (2006) Enhancement of Safety Analysis Capability for a CANDU-6 Reactor
Using RELAP-CANDU/SCAN Coupled Code System, Nuclear Technology, 156:2, 159-167, DOI:
10.13182/NT06-A3782

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 ENHANCEMENT OF SAFETY ANALYSIS
CAPABILITY FOR A CANDU-6 REACTOR
USING RELAP-CANDU0SCAN COUPLED
CODE SYSTEM
MANWOONG KIM,* HYUN-KOON KIM, and HHO-JUNG KIM
Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, Regulatory Research Division
P.O. Box 114, Yusung, Taejon 305-600, Republic of Korea
SU HYON HWANG, IN SEOB HONG, and CHANG HYO KIM
Seoul National University, Nuclear Engineering Department, San 56-1, Shinlim-dong
Kwanak-Gu, Seoul, Republic of Korea
Downloaded by [University of New England] at 08:22 22 December 2017
Received October 24, 2005
Accepted for Publication March 28, 2006
The purpose of this study is the development and
verification of the coupled code system SCAN and
REL AP-CANDU for transient analysis of a Canada
deuterium uranium (CANDU) reactor. For this pur-
pose, a spatial kinetics calculation module is developed
and implemented in SCAN, a three-dimensional (3-D)
CANDU–pressurized heavy water reactor neutronics de-
sign and analysis code. Then, a dynamic linked library
of the SCAN code is generated for the integration with
REL AP-CANDU.
The REL AP-CANDU code has been developed for
best-estimate transient simulation of CANDU reactor cool-
I. INTRODUCTION
A nuclear reactor simulator consists mainly of two
different blocks that solve the models used for the basic
physical phenomena taking place in the reactor. In this
way, there is a neutronic module that simulates the neu-
tron balance in the reactor core and a thermal-hydraulics
module that simulates the heat transfer in the fuel, the
heat transfer from the fuel to the water, and the different
condensation and evaporation processes taking place in
the reactor core and in the condenser system.
The RELAP5 code 1 has been developed for best-
estimate transient simulation of pressurized water reac-
tors ~PWRs! and associated systems. The principal feature
of the RELAP5 code is the use of a two-fluid, nonequi-
librium, nonhomogeneous and hydrodynamic model for
transient simulation of two-phase system behavior. It em-
*E-mail: mwkim@kins.re.kr
NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY VOL. 156 NOV. 2006
REACTOR SAFETY
KEYWORDS: RELAP-CANDU/
SCAN , coupled code system,
safety analysis
ant systems based on the REL AP5 code. The SCAN code
is a 3-D neutronic calculation code, which is composed
of both unified nodal methods based on coarse-mesh fi-
nite difference method solutions to the time-dependent
two-group diffusion equations.
To verify the reliability of the coupled code system
REL AP-CANDU/SCAN, the 40% reactor inlet header
break accident, the 100% reactor outlet header break
accident, and the pump suction pipe break are analyzed.
The proposed coupled thermal-hydraulic and neutronic
analyses methodology shows that there is an important
margin in the traditional accident analysis.
ploys a full nonequilibrium, six-equation, two-fluid model
and a point-kinetics neutronic model. However, it is dif-
ficult to simulate properly the thermal-hydraulic behav-
iors of the horizontal multichannels of a Canada deuterium
uranium ~CANDU! reactor. Therefore, there have been a
lot of studies 2,3 to improve the RELAP5 code applicable
to a CANDU reactor. To develop the RELAP-CANDU
code, several thermal-hydraulic models have been added
to enhance the reliability of transient simulation for
CANDU reactors.4– 6
Nonetheless, there is a certain limitation in using the
point-kinetics model to apply the core power calculation
for CANDU reactors. In this regard, the three-dimensional
~3-D! kinetics code SCAN has been developed. The ki-
netics calculation model of the SCAN code is composed
of both unified nodal method ~UNM!–based coarse-
mesh finite difference ~CMFD! and finite difference
method ~FDM! solutions to the time-dependent two-
group diffusion equations. And two UNM options of the
159
 Kim et al. SAFETY ANALYSIS FOR A CANDU-6 REACTOR
nodal expansion method ~NEM! and analytic nodal
method ~ANM! are implemented in the SCAN code.7,8
For the temporal discretization of the diffusion equa-
tions, the theta method with exponential transformation
of the flux is applied. Therefore, this 3-D kinetics model
could be used as an independent model to replace the
point-kinetics model within RELAP.
In loss-of-coolant-accident ~LOCA! analysis of the
CANDU reactor, the system thermal-hydraulic code
RELAP-CANDU alone cannot predict the transient be-
havior accurately. Therefore, the best-estimate neutron-
ics and system thermal-hydraulic coupled code system is
necessary to describe the transient behavior with greater
accuracy and reliability. To perform online calculation of
safety analysis for CANDU reactors, a coupled thermal-
hydraulics–neutronics code system was developed in such
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a way that the best-estimate thermal-hydraulic system
code for a CANDU reactor, RELAP-CANDU, is coupled
with the full 3-D reactor core kinetics code SCAN using
the dynamic link library ~DLL! method. In the current
implementation, the coupled RELAP-CANDU0SCAN
code is executed using automated techniques ~i.e., using
a graphical user interface! with minimal user input. And
the coupled code system has been applied for safety analy-
sis in support of licensing review or safety assessment of
the operating power plant.
The benchmark problems such as the 40% break ac-
cident in the reactor inlet header ~RIH!, the 100% break
accident in the reactor outlet header ~ROH!, and the 50%
break accident in the pump suction are used as the basis
for testing the coupled RELAP-CANDU0SCAN code.
The RELAP-CANDU model was built according to the
specifications provided in the accident analysis of the
Final Safety Analysis Report. The model was to be nearly
identical to a CATHENA model based on the same bench-
mark for purposes of comparison. The same SCAN input
file was used for executing with RELAP-CANDU pro-
viding a solution that should be different only because of
the differences in the thermal-hydraulic solution. The
validity of the coupled code system is investigated by the
simulation of reactor power transients due to a LOCA
initiated by the insertion of positive void reactivity into
the core, using the geometry and data of Wolsong units.
In this study, the simulation results of the 40% break
LOCA in the RIH using the RELAP-CANDU0SCAN
coupled code system is presented.
II. FEATURES OF RELAP-CANDU/SCAN COUPLED
CODE SYSTEM
II.A. RELAP-CANDU Code
II.A.1. Thermal-Hydraulics Calculating Model
The RELAP5 code has been developed for best-
estimate transient simulation of PWRs and associated
160
systems. The principal feature of the RELAP5 code is the
use of a two-fluid, nonequilibrium and nonhomogeneous
hydrodynamic model for transient simulation of the two-
phase system behavior. It employs a full nonequilibrium,
six-equation, two-fluid model and a point-kinetics neu-
tronic model. The RELAP5 thermal-hydraulic model
solves eight field equations for eight primary dependent
variables. The primary dependent variables are pressure
~P !, phasic specific internal energies ~Ug , Uf !, vapor vol-
ume fraction ~void fraction! ~ag !, phasic velocities ~vg , vf !,
noncondensable quality ~ xn !, and boron density ~rb !.
The independent variables are time ~t ! and distance ~ x!.
The secondary dependent variables used in the equations
are phasic densities ~rg , rf !, phasic temperatures ~Tg , Tf !,
saturation temperature ~Ts !, and noncondensable mass
fraction in noncondensable gas phase ~ xni ! for the i ’th
noncondensable species. Closure of the field equations is
provided through the use of constitutive relations and
correlations for such processes as interphase friction, in-
terphase heat transfer, wall friction, and wall heat transfer.
II.A.2. Model Developed for CANDU Reactors
Although the RELAP5 computer code has been de-
veloped for best-estimate transient simulation of a PWR
and its associated systems, it is difficult to simulate prop-
erly the thermal-hydraulic behaviors of the horizontal
multichannels of a CANDU reactor. Therefore, there have
been a lot of studies to improve the RELAP5 code ap-
plicable to a CANDU reactor. To develop the RELAP-
CANDU code, several thermal-hydraulic models are
improved, such as ~a! the addition of correlations for the
horizontal fuel bundle, ~b! the addition of the McAdams
natural convection correlation, ~c! the addition of a pres-
sure tube deformation model with pressure tube burst
criterion, ~d! the addition of CANDU pump homologous
curves, ~e! the addition of the horizontal stratification
entrainment0pull-through model with arbitrary oriented
branches, etc.
II.A.3. Data Exchange Model
To conduct thermal-hydraulic feedback to SCAN neu-
tronics, the RELAP-CANDU code is modified to link
with the dynamic linked library code SCAN DLL so as to
pass the core thermal-hydraulics data to the SCAN code.
In the SCAN, these thermal-hydraulic data are mapped,
the 3-D full core power distribution is recalculated, and
the calculated power profile is passed back to RELAP-
CANDU for thermal-hydraulic calculation.
II.B. SCAN Code
II.B.1. Kinetics Calculational Model
The kinetics calculational model of the SCAN code
is composed of both the UNM-based 4 CMFD and FDM
solutions to the time-dependent two-group diffusion
NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY VOL. 156 NOV. 2006
 Kim et al.
equations. And two UNM options of the NEM and ANM
are implemented in the SCAN code. For the temporal
discretization of the diffusion equations, the theta method
with exponential transformation of the flux is applied.
II.B.2. Reactor Trip Model
A power transient initiated by coolant voiding is ter-
minated with the insertion of shutoff rods ~shutdown
system 1! or liquid poison ~shutdown system 2! as a
result of the trip signal. As the trip signal used to be
generated from the code prediction by fluxes at detector
positions, the rate-of-log power calculation module is
developed using the ion chamber circuitry equations.
Using this module, SCAN code enables one not only to
initiate automatic drop of shutdown system 1 but also to
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calculate the reactor trip time.
II.B.3 Data Exchange Model
The dynamic linked library code SCAN DLL has
been generated to build the coupled code system of SCAN
and RELAP-CANDU. For the generation of SCAN DLL,
the SCAN code was modified to be adequate for the
Windows platform and reformulated as a subroutine of
the RELAP-CANDU code. And the adapter DLL has
been generated for data exchange between those two in-
dividual codes.
II.B.4. Data Mapping Model
The core of a CANDU-6 reactor consists of 380
channels with 12 bundles in each channel. And the total of
21 696 nodes is used for the full core power calculation
with a standard mesh configuration of a 42⫻34⫻20 model
in SCAN code. Meanwhile, the total of 48 nodes is used
for thermal-hydraulic variable estimation in RELAP-
CANDU conventionally. Therefore, the development of
the general node-to-node mapping module between nodes
for thermal-hydraulic calculation and nodes for neutronic
calculation is conducted for reliable exchange of feed-
back data between those two individual codes.
II.C. Coupled RELAP-CANDU/SCAN Code
The coupled RELAP-CANDU0SCAN code uses an
internal integration scheme in which the solution of the
system and core thermal hydraulics is obtained by the
RELAP-CANDU code, and only the special kinetics so-
lution is obtained by the SCAN code. In this scheme, the
SCAN code uses the thermal-hydraulics solution data
~e.g., coolant density0temperature and fuel temperature!
calculated by RELAP-CANDU to incorporate appropri-
ate feedback effects into the cross sections. Likewise,
RELAP-CANDU takes the space-dependent powers cal-
culated by SCAN and solves for the heat conduction in
the core heat structures.
NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY VOL. 156 NOV. 2006
SAFETY ANALYSIS FOR A CANDU-6 REACTOR
Fig. 1. Feedback data exchange between RELAP-CANDU0
SCAN.
Figure 1 illustrates the feedback data exchange sche-
matic of the RELAP-CANDU0SCAN coupled code sys-
tem. The coupling of RELAP-CANDU and SCAN is
explicit, and the two codes are locked into the same time
step. For this implementation, the RELAP-CANDU so-
lution leads the SCAN solution by one time step. Spe-
cifically, the advancement of the time step begins with
RELAP-CANDU obtaining the solution to the hydro-
dynamic and heat conduction field equations using the
power from the previous time step. The property data
obtained from this solution are then sent to SCAN, and
the power at the current time step is computed. The nor-
mal termination of the coupled RELAP-CANDU0SCAN
code is controlled by RELAP-CANDU.
III. BENCHMARK VERIFICATION
To verify the reliability of RELAP-CANDU0SCAN
coupled codes, a series of benchmark problems such as
40% RIH break, 100% ROH break, and 50% pump suc-
tion break were performed to compare with those of the
CATHENA-RFSP codes.9,10 As for the comparison, sim-
ulations are conducted until reactor shutdown ~;3 s!
because reactor power is too low after shutoff rod injec-
tion. Since the major factor of the code verification is
subjected to the calculation of the transient power due to
void reactivity, the verification study is focused on the
accuracy of coolant density calculated by RELAP-
CANDU and the reactor power calculated by SCAN.
In the verification, a code-to-code comparison has
been conducted since there are no experimental data for
the CANDU reactor. Therefore, the simulated results by
RELAP-CANDU0SCAN coupled codes are compared
with those of the CATHENA0RFSP codes used for de-
signing the CANDU reactor by Atomic Energy of Can-
ada Limited.
III.A. RELAP-CANDU/SCAN Simulations
A primary heat transport system ~PHTS! of Wolsong
unit 2, a CANDU-6 reactor, consists of a reactor and two
161
 Kim et al. SAFETY ANALYSIS FOR A CANDU-6 REACTOR
closed loops. And a reactor core consists of 380 fuel
channels, including pressure tubes, and the coolant flows
in a countercurrent direction between neighboring fuel
channels. To simulate thermal-hydraulic behavior, the
reactor core is modeled with 4 simplified fuel channels
representing 380 fuel channels ~95 fuel channels each!,
four coolant pumps, core inlet and outlet feeder pipes,
feeder pipe header, and inlet pipe of coolant as shown in
Fig. 2.
To simulate heat transfer between the PHTS and the
secondary heat transfer system, the steam generator is
modeled with downcomer, riser, moisture separator, re-
circulation path, and dome, and tubes are modeled with
heat structures. An emergency core cooling system is
modeled in three operational modes, such as high-
pressure, intermediate-pressure, and low-pressure injec-
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tions. To initiate the transient simulation, the breaks take
place at the RIN ~Vol-425! for 40% RIH break, the ROH
~Vol-335! for 100% ROH break, and the pump suction
~Vol-364! for 50% pump suction break in channel 4,
respectively, and are modeled with a trip valve and a
containment volume.
To verify the reliability of the RELAP-CANDU0
SCAN coupled code system, simulations for three bench-
mark problems, such as 40% RIH break, 100% ROH
break, and 50% pump suction break were performed. In
Fig. 2. RELAP0CANDU primary and secondary circuit nodalization.
162
the simulation, the pump model for Wolsong unit 2 was
developed to represent the realistic thermal-hydraulic char-
acteristics, because the changes in coolant densities de-
pend on primary heat transport pump characteristics and
effects on void reactivity. The simulated results of reac-
tor power in accordance with the changes in coolant den-
sities are compared with those of the Westinghouse pump
model in the RELAP code as shown in Figs. 3 through 8.
For the 40% RIH break, the changes in coolant den-
sities for each pump model are similar to those in Fig. 3.
The decrease in coolant densities after a break causes the
increase of void reactivity, and the transient reactor power
begins to increase rapidly until shutoff rod injection. The
reactor is tripped at 0.5 s by the second signal of the first
shutoff system, and then the shutoff rod initiates injec-
tion. The transient reactor power is similar for each case.
In Fig. 4, the reactor power for the Wolsong unit 2 pump
model is slightly higher than that for the Westinghouse
pump model because the coolant densities for the Wol-
song unit 2 pump model are slightly less than those of the
Westinghouse pump model.
For the 100% ROH break and the 50% pump suction
break, the coolant densities of the Wolsong unit 2 pump
model are also less than those of the Westinghouse pump
model as shown in Figs. 5, 6, and 7. Therefore, the reac-
tor powers of the Wolsong unit 2 pump model are greater
NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY VOL. 156 NOV. 2006
 Kim et al.
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Fig. 3. Coolant densities with RELAP0CANDU for 40% RIH
break.
Fig. 4. Reactor power with SCAN for 40% RIH break.
than those of the Westinghouse pump for both cases, as
shown in Figs. 6, 7, and 8.
III.B. Comparison of RELAP-CANDU/SCAN with
CATHENA/RFSP Simulation
A code-to-code comparison has been conducted be-
tween RELAP-CANDU0SCAN coupled codes system
and CATHENA0RFSP for three transient cases: 40% RIH
break, 100% ROH break, and 50% pump suction break.
However, in the computational model, while the 380 fuel
channels are modeled with 4 single-average-channels in
RELAP-CANDU, the CATHENA-RFSP is modeled with
3 single-average-channels for intact channels and chan-
nel 4, a broken channel, grouped with 7 parallel channels
NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY VOL. 156 NOV. 2006
SAFETY ANALYSIS FOR A CANDU-6 REACTOR
Fig. 5. Coolant densities in RELAP0CANDU for 100% ROH
break.
Fig. 6. Reactor power in SCAN for 100% ROH break.
grouped according to the reactor power and flow rate as
shown in Fig. 9. Therefore, it is difficult to compare
explicitly between the RELAP-CANDU0SCAN coupled
codes system and the CATHENA-RFSP codes system.
To compare implicitly, in the case of 100% ROH
break, the coolant densities calculated by CATHENA-
RFSP are supplied to the SCAN code to calculate the
reactor power and then compared with those of
CATHENA-RFSP. For the other two cases, the coolant
densities calculated by RELAP-CANDU are compared
with those of CATHENA, because the CATHENA nodal
model in this calculation consists of four single-averaged-
channels like that of RELAP-CANDU.
Figure 10 shows the transient reactor power calcu-
lated by SCAN as compared with that of RFSP in the case
163
 Kim et al. SAFETY ANALYSIS FOR A CANDU-6 REACTOR
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Fig. 7. Coolant densities in RELAP0CANDU for 50% pump

suction break.

Fig. 9. Channel arrangement for whole core ~seven average

channel model in core pass 4!.

Fig. 8. Reactor power in SCAN for 50% pump suction break.

of 100% ROH break. The SCAN calculation is con-

ducted in such a way that the averaged coolant density
from pass 4-1 through pass 4-7 is supplied to SCAN code
input since the RELAP-CANDU calculation is modeled
with four single-averaged-channels. In Fig. 11, the tran-
sient reactor power of the SCAN code is, in general,
similar to that calculated by RFSP but is a little bit less
after ;2.5 s. It seems that the difference is due to the
different characteristics of SCAN and RFSP, as shown in
Table I. In the incremental absorption cross section of the
shutoff rod, as the calculated results of the DRAGON
code are, in general, larger than those of the MULLTI-
CELL code, the transient reactor power of SCAN is less
than that of RFSP. Besides, SCAN using a two-group
neutron energy group model is generally calculated at
lower reactor power than RFSP using a 1.5-neutron en-
Fig. 10. Coolant densities in CATHENA for 100% ROH break.
ergy group model in the calculation of reactor power.
Considering the neutronic characteristic, it could be con-
cluded that SCAN is reliable for simulating the reactor
power calculation.
In the cases of 40% RIH break and 50% pump
suction break, since there are no data for the coolant
densities in Ref. 11, the coolant densities calculated by
RELAP-CANDU are compared with those of the CA-
THENA code. The coolant densities for each case are
shown in Figs. 12 and 13. The coolant densities calculated

164 NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY VOL. 156 NOV. 2006


Comparison of Characteristics of SCAN and RFSP
Classification
Lattice cross sections
Incremental cross sections
Neutron energy group model
Nuclear library
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Fig. 11. Reactor power in SCAN and RFSP for 100% ROH
break.
Fig. 12. Coolant densities in RELAP0CANDU and CA-
THENA for 40% RIH break.
by RELAP-CANDU using the Wolsong unit 2 pump model
are similar to those of the CATHENA code.
In conclusion, if the coolant densities are similar
between RELAP-CANDU and CATHENA, the reactor
NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY VOL. 156 NOV. 2006
Kim et al. SAFETY ANALYSIS FOR A CANDU-6 REACTOR
TABLE I
RFSP SCAN
POWDERPUFS-V ~PPV! code WIMS-AECL code
MULTICELL code DRAGON code
1.5 group Full 2 group
Maybe previous ENDF0B-V ENDF0B-VI
Fig. 13. Coolant densities in RELAP0CANDU and CA-
THENA for 50% pump suction break.
power is similar between the SCAN code and the RFSP
code through the simulation of 100% ROH break. In
terms of the coolant density, it is also similar between the
RELAP-CANDU and CATHENA codes for 40% RIH
break and 50% pump-suction-break accidents. It means
that the transient reactor power would be similar between
the SCAN code and the RFSP code. Therefore, it can
be concluded that the RELAP-CANDU0SCAN coupled
code system is reliable when compared with the RFSP-
CATHENA code system.
III.C. Sensitivity Study for RELAP-CANDU/SCAN Coupled
Code System
To explore the sensitivity of the RELAP-CANDU0
SCAN coupled code system, an assessment of 35% RIH
break has been conducted. In the simulation, after the
break was initiated, the PHTS depressurized rapidly due
to blowdown of the coolant through the pipe break. The
void was generated in the core by depressurization and
increased the reactivity.
Figure 14 shows the fuel sheath temperature of the
critical path in the broken loop for two cases: ~a! the
results calculated by the RELAP-CANDU0SCAN
165
 Kim et al. SAFETY ANALYSIS FOR A CANDU-6 REACTOR

TABLE II
Relative Axial Power Distributions in Case 1

Time ⫽ 0 s

Node Channel 1 Channel 2 Channel 3 Channel 4

1 0.3638 0.3604 0.3646 0.3595

2 0.8312 0.8228 0.8327 0.8209
3 1.0881 1.0770 1.0892 1.0756
4 1.1397 1.1292 1.1400 1.1287
5 1.1866 1.1804 1.1875 1.1799
6 1.2586 1.2563 1.2593 1.2568
7 1.2567 1.2591 1.2561 1.2605
8 1.1443 1.1501 1.1428 1.1520
9 1.0904 1.0994 1.0882 1.1012
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Fig. 14. Fuel sheath temperature in channel 4. 10 1.0834 1.0961 1.0822 1.0966
11 0.8298 0.8410 0.8295 0.8405
12 0.3638 0.3688 0.3641 0.3688
Sum 12.0000 12.0010 12.0007 12.0005

Time ⫽ 3 s

Node Channel 1 Channel 2 Channel 3 Channel 4

1 0.4382 0.4882 0.4877 0.9658

2 0.8554 0.9408 0.9576 2.0333
3 0.7661 0.8198 0.8760 2.2354
4 0.7738 0.8179 0.8990 1.9570
5 0.7968 0.8227 0.9662 1.4875
6 0.7670 0.7790 0.9960 1.1525
7 0.7742 0.7723 1.1386 1.0157
8 0.7978 0.7786 1.4419 0.9653
9 0.7872 0.7488 1.8936 0.8909
10 0.8189 0.7680 2.2282 0.8966
11 0.9422 0.8568 2.0314 0.9811
Fig. 15. Relative axial power distributions in case 1. 12 0.4891 0.4387 0.9662 0.4997
Sum 9.0067 9.0317 14.8824 15.0806

Time ⫽ 500 s

coupled code system ~case 1! and ~b! the results by Node Channel 1 Channel 2 Channel 3 Channel 4
RELAP-CANDU with precalculated power ~case 2!. This
implies that while the axial power distribution is given as 1 0.5386 0.5602 0.5323 0.7992
an input value in case 2, that of case 1 is calculated by 2 1.0435 1.0776 1.0286 1.6694
RELAP-CANDU0SCAN coupled codes as shown in 3 0.9226 0.9518 0.9154 1.7990
Table II. In the results, the calculated maximum fuel 4 0.9283 0.9374 0.9115 1.5888
sheath temperature in case 1 is 960 K at 9.7 s in node 3 5 0.9485 0.9715 0.9629 1.2317
and 997.3 K at 9.3 s in node 5 for case 2. It means that the 6 0.8990 0.9394 0.9624 0.9922
precalculated power methodology is more conservative 7 0.9010 0.9360 1.0402 0.9178
than the present proposed methodology in terms of the 8 0.9331 0.9374 1.2274 0.9139
safety margin for fuel channel integrity. 9 0.9154 0.8894 1.5475 0.8770
The variation in axial power distribution for case 1 is 10 0.9499 0.9264 1.8115 0.9024
shown in Fig. 15. It shows that the axial power distribu- 11 1.0930 1.0358 1.6728 1.0258
tion varies according to void reactivity as time pro- 12 0.5702 0.5342 0.7992 0.5314
gresses. At initial conditions, the axial power distribution Sum 10.6430 10.6973 13.4117 13.2485
shape has a maximum value at the center and minimum

166 NUCLEAR TECHNOLOGY VOL. 156 NOV. 2006

 Kim et al.
values at each end. After the break, the axial power dis-
tribution shape in the intact loop is flattened except for
each end, and the peak power in the broken loop is shifted
near the core entrance due to the void reactivity effect.
Therefore, it can be concluded that the transient analyses
using the RELAP-CANDU0SCAN coupled code system
are more accurate and realistic.
IV. CONCLUSIONS
To obtain more accurate predictions for power tran-
sients of CANDU reactors, the coupled RELAP-CANDU0
SCAN code system is developed and verified through the
simulation of the positive void-reactivity-driven 40% RIH,
100% ROH, and 50% pump-suction-break LOCA. As
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can be demonstrated from the results, the RELAP-
CANDU0SCAN coupled code system can be used as a
specific transient analysis tool for CANDU reactors
In conclusion, the features of the RELAP-CANDU0
SCAN make it a valuable general tool for the safety
analysis of postulated accident scenarios. The applica-
tion range of RELAP is extended by the added ability to
simulate 3-D neutron kinetics phenomena and to calcu-
late thermal margins.
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SCAN Coupled Code System,” Proc. Korea Nuclear Society
Mtg., Yongpyung, Korea, October 28–29, 2005, p. 97, Korea
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167