An integrated Petri net-pseudo bond graph model for nuclear hazard assessment

Wootton, Mark James; Andrews, John D.; Smith, Roger; Arul, A. John; Vinod, Gopika; Prasad, M. Hari; Garg, Vipul

Abstract

A pseudo-bond graph is presented to model the heat transferred from the fuel rods to the coolant via its cladding in a generic nuclear reactor case study. Simulations performed using this model are used to explore the temperatures of the core components under ordinary and emergency scenarios, considering various conditions of coolant supply and reactor power output. The model is combined with a timed stochastic Petri net to produce a hybrid model, in which the reactor operation and fault status is determined by the Petri net and fed into the bond graph to examine the resulting impact on core temperatures, which in turn are fed back into the Petri net process. The results predict the distribution of the reactor operational durations before a disruption occurs. The model provides the temperature profiles attained by the cladding and fuel components, indicating a low probability of dangerous temperatures.

Citation

Wootton, M. J., Andrews, J. D., Smith, R., Arul, A. J., Vinod, G., Prasad, M. H., & Garg, V. (2024). An integrated Petri net-pseudo bond graph model for nuclear hazard assessment. Safety and Reliability, https://doi.org/10.1080/09617353.2024.2363067

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: May 30, 2024
• Online Publication Date: Aug 1, 2024
• Publication Date: Aug 1, 2024
• Deposit Date: Aug 13, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Aug 1, 2025
• Journal: Safety and Reliability
• Print ISSN: 0961-7353
• Electronic ISSN: 2469-4126
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/09617353.2024.2363067
• Keywords: Hybrid petri net-bond graph modelling; nuclear power plant safety; risk & reliability engineering
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/38372844
• Publisher URL: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09617353.2024.2363067
• Additional Information: Peer Review Statement: The publishing and review policy for this title is described in its Aims & Scope.; Aim & Scope: http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?show=aimsScope&journalCode=tsar20; Received: 2023-04-26; Revised: 2024-05-21; Accepted: 2024-05-30; Published: 2024-08-01