Hydrogen Behaviour and Control and Related Containment Loading Aspects
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International Atomic Energj Agency IAEA-TC-427.6 Division of Nuclear Safety (TC-SR-2) TECHNICAL COMMITTEE ON THERMAL REACTOR SAFETY RESEARCH HYDROGEN BEHAVIOUR AND CONTROL AND RELATED CONTAINMENT LOADING ASPECTS PROCEEDINGS OF A SPECIALISTS1 MEETING ORGANISED BY THE INTERNATIONAL VTOMIC ENERGY AGENCY 1 A H L.D IN SUZDAL, USS' ' .U SEPTEMBER 1983 INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY, VIENNA, 1984 HYDROGEN BEHAVIOUR AND CONTROL AND RELATED CONTAINMENT LOADING ASPECTS PROCEEDINGS OF A SPECIALISTS' MEETING ORGANIZED BY THE INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY AND HELD IN SUZDAL, USSR, 19-23 SEPTEMBER 1983 Chairman: 0. Kovalevich The Kurchatov Atomic Energy Institute, Moscow, USSR Scientific Secretary: H. Andres International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY, VIENNA, 1984 HYDROGEN BEHAVIOUR AND CONTROL AND RELATED CONTAINMENT LOADING ASPECTS IAEA, VIENNA, 1984 IAEA-TC-427.6 Printed by the IAEA in Austria September 1984 CONTENTS Introduction HYDROGEN PHENOMENOLOGY RESEARCH The formation of hydrogen in the radiolysis of water in closed volumes 7 S.A. Kabakchi, I.E. Lebedeva, USSR The concentration limits of hydrogen ignition in air in mixtures with non-combustible gases under normal circumstances 10 A. V. Ivanov, A. Ya. Korol'chenko, Yu.N. Shebeko, USSR Detonation characteristics of hydrogenous mixtures (A review paper) 14 A.A. Borisov, B.E. Gel'fand, S.A. Tsyganov, USSR Theoretical evaluation of critical gas layer thickness in relation to detonation wave propagation 33 Yu.N. Shebeko, A. Ya. Korol'chenko, USSR Determination of flame propagation limits in stoichiometric oxyhydrogen mixtures with steam 37 S.M. Kogarko, A.G. Lyamin, O.E. Popov, A. Yu. Kusharin, A. V. Dubrovin, USSR REACTOR-SPECIFIC HYDROGEN RESEARCH Hydrogen Production in a PWR during LOCA 42 P. Cassette, France Analysis of hydrogen distribution in containments under accident conditions 52 P. Papadimitriou, H.L Jahn, T. V. Pham, Fed. Rep. of Germany RISK EVALUATION, PREVENTION, MITIGATION Hydrogen safety in nuclear power plant reactors 66 A. V. Dubrovin, V.A. Ermakov, USSR Assessment of hydrogen risk in French pressurized water nuclear reactors 70 J. Duco, L. Rousseau, J.M. Evrard, France Analysis of the effects of hydrogen burning and measures taken for their mitigation at the Loviisa nuclear power plant 83 B. Regnell, S. Helynen, Finland The basis for safety standards aimed at averting fire and explosion hazards during work involving hydrogen 90 AM Baratov, USSR STATEMENT OF AN INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION Statement on current and proposed activities of DG XII of the Commission of the European Communities 98 B. Tolley (CEC), presented by J. Duco (France) List of Participants 100 INTRODUCTION This Specialists' Meeting was organized by IAEA In Its efforts to promote worldwide exchange of informâtion In the area of reactor safety research, an activity which Is guided by its Technical Committee on Thermal Reactor Safety Research (TC-SR). The meeting was hosted by the USSR State Committee for the Peaceful Uses of Atomic Energy. The major concerns regarding hydrogen are that important safety systems may be damaged due to either pressure loads or high temperatures. In order to assess the possible threats, and in order to select appropriate preventive or mitigating measures, it is necessary to understand how hydrogen is produced, how it is transported and mixed within the containment, and how it combusts. Such hydrogen phenomena as concentration limits for combustion or detonation, or the combustion and detonation characteristics and the influence of diluents, are not particular to nuclear power plants, but they are of concern wherever the presence of hydrogen must be considered. Respective research results and experiences can therefore be of value also for the particular conditions prevailing in nuclear power plants and are referred to in some of the papers preser.".?d at the meeting. In discussing general conclusions and recommendations with respect to hydrogen research, the participants agreed that the severity of risk posed by hydrogen depends largely on the reactor design and in particular on the containment characteristics. However, it was felt that more work needs to be done in the following areas: - concentration limits for inflammability detonation characteristics - migration behaviour - influence of the composition of containment atmosphere - detection and control in compartments preventive and mitigating measures - evaluation of the ultimate strength of the containment - equipment survivability - regulatory activities relating to hydrogen danger The above items reflect the fact that reactors are designed and operated as to avoid conditions in which sizeable amounts of hydrogen can originate. It is important, however, to understand the complex mechanisms governing Its behaviour in order to assess the possible threats to safety systems and to provide appropriate measures to ensure their proper functioning. THE FORMATION OF HYDROGEN IN THE RADIOLYSIS point one is interested in the maximum hydrogen concentration found in the OF WATER IN CLOSED VOLUMES free space inside a closed container of air-saturated water kept for an unspecified period of time in a field of ionizing radiation. The doses S.A. KABAKCHI, I.E. LEBEDEVA absorbed by the water in such cases are very high, reaching hundreds or Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Academy of more Mrad. At such doses what is known as a steady radiation-chemical state Sciences of the USSR, is produced in the water. This state constitutes a dynamic equilibrium Moscow, in which the rate of formation of the molecular products of water radiolysis Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (H_, H.O, and 0.) is in the primary event equal to that of their dissociation in secondary reactions. After the stationary state has been established, Translated from Russian the concentration of the products remains unchanged, no matter how long irradiation continues. The relationships of the steady-state concentrations Abstract of hydrogen, hydrogen peroxide and oxygen to various parameters (dose rate, By applying the sum total of the elementary reactions involving temperature etc.) have been investigated quite extensively with regard to short-lived particles it is possible to fairly accurately calculate the the radiolysis of aqueous oxygen solutions. The relevant data are kinetics of hydrogen formation and of its separation from water, and also to set out in our paper [l]. We shall use these data again in fact in calculate the accumulation of hydrogen peroxide and oxygen during elaborating a methodology for the present case. At this point we radiolysis of pure water and water solutions at room temperature. This would like to draw attention to one particular feature of the radiolysis paper describes a semi-empirical method to calculate the kinetics of of oxygen-containing water: in the irradiation of water in an enclosed hydrogen formation for certain cases encountered in nuclear power production. space the absolute quantity of oxygen in the system remains unchanged [2]. As mentioned above, the rate at which hydrogen builds up in radiolysis The radiation chemistry of water and aqueous oxygen solutions is a branch can be calculated by means of a system of differential equations showing of chemistry which receives considerable attention nowadays. By applying the change in concentration of all the particles involved in the chemical a well-known mechanism - the sum total of the elementary reactions involving reactions in the system under study. It can be shown that, for a short-lived particles - it is possible, using a computer, to make fairly given initial concentration of oxygen, the accumulation of hydrogen accurate calculations of the kinetics of hydrogen formation and of its can be expressed by a single equation: Separation from water, and also to calculate the accumulation of hydrogen peroxide and oxygen during the radiolysis of pure water and oxygen solutions at room temperature. At temperatures above room temperature, however, it is not possible to attain a sufficient degree of accuracy in the calculations, u> ** since not all the temperature relationships of the kinetic parameters for elementary reactions and short-lived particle yields are known. Vet it is at temperatures above room temperature that the radiolysis of water is where I is the dose rate, G(H,) is the molecular hydrogen yield equal most often of interest in practice. to 0.45 molecules/100 eV over the temperature range 20-250 C; In certain cases encountered in nuclear power production, the kinetics B is the ratio of reaction rate constants of hydrogen formation can be calculated by means of the semi-empirical method = HO, H 0, (2) described below. The problem is that very often from the practical stand- OH 2 OH » H2 = H » H,O, (3) At a given temperature, this partial pressure can be calculated equal at room tenoeracure Co 1.00 and dependenc on cemperacure in by means of the following equation: accordance with the relationship B » exp(1.25xlO3/T - 4.26), (4) (6) T is temperature in °K and, finally, A is a parameter calculated from A - the experimental data. In physical terms, the parameter A denotes the effective yield of hydroxyl radicals involved in the dissociation where a is the coefficient of Henry's law for hydrogen. Fig. 3 shows of molecular hydrogen in accordance with reaction (3). In the steady a graph from which it is possible to calculate the critical partial state, d[H-]/dt s 0 and Eq. (1) is transformed into Che algebraic relationship: pressure of hydrogen circulating in the free space of a closed container with air-saturated water and irradiated at the above-mentioned dose rates and temperatures. The graph was plotted on the basis of the (5) temperature relacionship [H,0,] and a, together with Eq. (4) and the daca given in Figs I and 2. d We stated above chat, in the radiolysis of oxygen-bearing water in a closed system, the quanticy of oxygen is noc affected by Irradiation. In conjunction with the experimental data on the dependence of stationary Consequently, ic is easy Co determine the partial oxygen pressure (P.