Pressurized Water Reactors

Water reactors use water as both a cooling fluid, and a neutron moderator. They have a negative void coefficient. but as positive moderator coefficient of reactivity. Pressurized water reactors are made from multiple components that include, the reactor, primary coolant loop, primary water pump, and steam generator. PWR technology was developed by the Westinghouse company. Hot water may be corrosive to the metal cladding on the fuel, therefore materials such as zirconium resist corrosion. A pressurized water reactor limits the temperature by providing pressure to prevent boiling. These need high-pressure vessels, as well as piping and heat exchangers. Expensive neutron moderator are not needed. PWR reactors allow for a small reactor core for a given power level.[^4] 98.4% of the nuclear reactors in the world are PWRs.[^5]

[[Negative Void Coefficient]]
Point Reactor Kinetics Model – used for the reactor
Thermal Hydraulic Reactor Model – also used to model the reactor
[[3-Region Pressurizer model]]
[[Steam Generator Model]]
[[Coolant Pump Model]]
[[NCSim Platform]] – contains a PWR reactor model
[[Zirconium]]
[[A1W Reactor]]
[[S1C Reactor]]
[[S5G Reactor]]
[[Clad Failures]] – leading cause of fuel failures in PWRs
[[TRAC]] – TRAC-P used for PWRs
[[Vandellos 2 Nuclear Power Plant]] – uses 3-loop PWR reactors
Submarine Reactors
[[Linearized PWR Model]]

Sources

  • Why Chernobyl Exploded – The Real Physics Behind The Reactor, (Jun. 08, 2019). Accessed: Dec. 08, 2022. [Online Video]. Available: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3d3rzFTrLg
  • M. S. El-Genk, T. Schriener, A. Hahn, and R. Altamimi, “A Physics-based, Dynamic Model of a Pressurized Water Reactor Plant with Programmable Logic Controllers for Cybersecurity Applications”.
  • M. Ragheb, “Nuclear Naval Propulsion,” in Nuclear Power – Deployment, Operation and Sustainability, P. Tsvetkov, Ed., InTech, 2011. doi: 10.5772/19007.
  • S. Høibråten et al., ENVIRONMENTAL RISK ASSESSMENT FOR NON-DEFUELLED, DECOMMISSIONED NUCLEAR SUBMARINES. 2007. doi: 10.13140/RG.2.1.1660.7124.[^4]
  • W. Chen, T. Liang, and V. Dinavahi, “Comprehensive Real-Time Hardware-In-the-Loop Transient Emulation of MVDC Power Distribution System on Nuclear Submarine,” IEEE Open J. Ind. Electron. Soc., vol. 1, pp. 326–339, 2020, doi: 10.1109/OJIES.2020.3036731.[^5]

Backlinks

[[Liquid Metal Reactors]]
[[Neutron Moderators]]
Nuclear Reactor