Study on unsteady characteristics of the reactor coolant pump under non-uniform inflow

Abstract The primary circuit of a nuclear power plant contains a steam generator (SG) and two vertical reactor coolant pumps (RCPs). Two RCPs are installed at the bottom of the SG. The structure of the channel-head of the SG is special, which leads to uneven flow from the RCP inlet and affects the operation performance of the pump. Taking the RCP of the third-generation reactor as the research object, the unsteady characteristics of the third-generation RCP under non-uniform inflow conditions were investigated using CFD, and the pressure pulsation characteristics inside the RCP were mainly studied. A series of monitoring points were set at the channel of the channel-head, impeller, diffuser and casing section respectively to study the influence of non-uniform flow on the pressure fluctuation and radial force distribution of the RCP. The results show that non-uniform inflow can cause instability in pressure fluctuations in the “throat” region of the channel-head. The interaction between the impeller and diffuser can cause pressure pulsation from the impeller outlet to the diffuser inlet, potentially impacting the safe and stable operation of the RCP. This research provides certain theoretical support for the design of RCPs under the condition of non-uniform inflow.