Implementation of Solar Salt Properties Into ARIANT and Simulation of Pressurized Loss of Forced Circulation in a High Temperature Gas-Cooled Small Modular Reactor

Abstract

Small modular reactors (SMRs) are actively being considered for use in Canada. Some proposed SMRs can make use of solar salt as an intermediate coolant for a heat storage system. The development of thermalhydraulic simulation tools is one of the key capabilities needed to examine the performance of SMRs and license this class of reactors. This article summarizes the implementation of molten solar salt fluid properties into the algorithm for analysis of network thermalhydraulics (ARIANT) and uses this code to simulate a high temperature gas-cooled SMR with helium and solar salt as its primary and secondary coolants during a pressurized loss of forced circulation (PLOFC) event. This work demonstrates the ability of ARIANT to simulate transient events in a two-loop reactor system consisting of helium and solar salt as coolants and helps to establish ARIANT as a tool for SMR analysis.