Pressure Drop Performance of Fuel Pin Bundle with Spiral Wire Spacer

Abstract

The pressure drop characteristics of a JEFR type fuel pin bundle were obtained from hydraulic tests. The coefficient of drag attributable to the spiral wire spacer wound round each fuel pin, as defined by de Stordeur, was found to be approximately 0.30 for the hexagonal lattice arrangement adopted. The coefficient is independent of spiral wire pitch, which ranged from 90 to 260mm.
The pressure drop to be expected in a fuel pin bundle with spiral wire spacer, such as used in current fast breeder applications, can be satisfactorily estimated by using the coefficients reported.