Studies for the Staggered Pans Core Catcher

Special devices (core catchers) might be required in the future to prevent containment failure by basemat erosion after reactor pressure vessel melt-through during a core meltdown accident. Quick freezing of the molten core masses is desirable to reduce the release of radioactivity. A configuration is investigated that consists essentially of a stack of vertically superimposed melt-resistant ceramic pans and that makes use of the vertical extension of small-diameter cavities to provide a sufficiently large spreading area such that the core melt freezes quickly. Tests with ∼100 kg of molten iron and aluminum oxide generated by the thermite reaction give some information on the resistance of various materials against the mixed metal/oxide melt and on the flow and distribution of metallic and oxide melts in such a corecatcher configuration.