Effect of Tube Banks on Rarefaction Wave Propagation

In a continuing effort to study the effect of steam generator feed line break on steam generator internals, a theoretical and experimental study has been undertaken. This paper summarizes results of a study whose goal is to check the effects of tube rows on rarefaction wave propagation generated by a sudden rupture. The effect of the tubes is presented in terms of measured pressures and strains with and without tubes. Ten rows of tubes are found to cause a transmission loss in the 1:10 steam generator scale model smaller than 689 kPa along the feed line centerline and have little effect away from the centerline, or on the pressure difference across the divider plate. Theoretical considerations include: estimating transmission losses in terms of tube bank geometry, wave length and frequency, and incident pulse; reflection from a free jet, and potential flow solution to the flow field near the pressure vessel-feed line interface.