Abstract
The concept of supercritical natural circulation loops (scNCLs) is only a recent one, with the pioneering research being publicized only in 2001. But the favorable heat transport properties and large volumetric expansion of the supercritical fluids make them ideal for natural circulation based cooling applications, and hence is gaining increased popularity in several applications, particularly for reactor core cooling. The unique nature of the supercritical fluid ensures distinct thermal hydraulic and stability characteristics of scNCLs, widely different than other fluid-driven loops. Only a small temperature variation is sufficient to induce drastic changes in the density of the supercritical fluid, leading to substantial local buoyancy and radial motion. Therefore, a thorough understanding of both thermal hydraulic and stability behavior of an scNCL is mandatory before full-scale industrial applications. However, the knowledge base is reasonably thin and some of the reported observations are also not in consensus, making it difficult for the beginners to grasp the initial concepts, particularly with the contrasting standards adopted by various research groups around the world. That prepares the backdrop of the present chapter, with the basic aim being to introduce a reader with basic engineering knowledge into the field of scNCL and primarily into the dynamics of such systems. Starting with a brief state-of-the-art review of the technology, both experimental and theoretical studies are discussed, in order to summarize the stability responses of such loops. Considering the increasing popularity, the comprehensive discussion present in this chapter will definitely help in consolidating the concerned knowledge for the future researchers.
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Abbreviations
- sc:
-
Super critical
- NCL:
-
Natural Circulation Loop
- FiHTD:
-
Flow induced Heat transfer deterioration
- \( pc \) :
-
Pseudo critical
- \( in \) :
-
Inlet
- \( cr \) :
-
Critical
- HHHC:
-
Horizontal heater horizontal cooler
- HHVC:
-
Horizontal heater vertical cooler
- VHVC:
-
Vertical heater vertical cooler
- VHHC:
-
Vertical heater horizontal cooler
- \( N_{TPC}^{{\prime }} \) :
-
Trans pseudo critical number
- \( N_{SUBPC} \) :
-
Sub pseudo critical number
- \( \rho^{*} \) :
-
Non-dimensional density
- \( h^{*} \) :
-
Non-dimensional enthalpy
- Stm:
-
Modified Stanton number
- \( \Delta p_{d} \) :
-
Pressure difference by gravity
- \( \Delta p_{r} \) :
-
Pressure difference by frictional resistance
- \( \dot{m} \) :
-
Mass flow rate (kg/s)
- \( Q \) :
-
Power (MW)
- \( \beta \) :
-
Thermal expansion coefficient (K−1)
- Lt:
-
Total length
- \( w \) :
-
Velocity (m/s)
- \( C_{p} \) :
-
Specific heat capacity (kJ/kg K)
- \( \Pi _{h} \) :
-
Heated Perimeter
- \( h \) :
-
Enthalpy (J/kg)
- \( q^{{\prime \prime }} \) :
-
Heat flux (W/m2)
- \( \rho \) :
-
Density (kg/m3)
- 0:
-
Reference value
- D:
-
Diameter (m)
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Srivastava, T., Sutradhar, P., Basu, D.N., Chen, L. (2020). An Overview of the Dynamics of Supercritical Natural Circulation Loops. In: Mukhopadhyay, A., Sen, S., Basu, D., Mondal, S. (eds) Dynamics and Control of Energy Systems. Energy, Environment, and Sustainability. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-0536-2_5
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