Agglomeration and size distribution of debris in DEFOR-A experiments with Bi2O3–WO3 corium simulant melt

Flooding of lower drywell has been adopted as a cornerstone of severe accident management strategy in Nordic type Boiling Water Reactors (BWR). It is assumed that the melt ejected into a deep pool of water will fragment, quench and form a porous debris bed coolable by natural circulation. If debris bed is not coolable, then dryout and possibly re-melting of the debris can occur. Melt attack on the containment basemat can threaten containment integrity. Agglomeration of melt debris and formation of solid “cake” regions provide a negative impact on coolability of the porous debris bed. In this work we present results of experimental investigation on the fraction of agglomerated debris obtained in the process of hot binary oxidic melt pouring into a pool of water. The Debris Bed Formation and Agglomeration (DEFOR-A) experiments provide data about the effects of the pool depth and water subcooling, melt jet diameter, and initial melt superheat on the fraction of agglomerated debris. The data presents first systematic study of the debris agglomeration phenomena and facilitates understanding of underlying physics which is necessary for development and validation of computational codes to enable prediction of the debris bed coolability in different scenarios of melt release.