Investigations into the physical phenomena and mechanisms that effect direct containment heating loads Original Research Article

Integral direct containment heating (DCH) experiment results are presented. The results are analyzed and discussed for the insights they have given into understanding the important physical phenomena and mechanisms that effect DCH loads to the containment. Particular attention is paid to (1) debris dispersal from the cavity and containment structure trapping, (2) hydrogen production and combustion, (3) the importance of difference in corium simulants used in integral DCH experiments and (4) corium debris quenching by flooded cavities. It is found that much has been learned about DCH phenomena that can be used for modeling and assessing potential containment loads.