Fuel assemblies of pressurized water reactors (PWRs) are constructed from fuel rods and supports to create rod bundles. To support and maintain the lateral spatial gaps of the rods, support grids are positioned at regular intervals in the direction of axial flow. With the presence of the spacer grids, many important factors related to the thermal-hydraulic performance of the fuel rod bundles need to be characterized, such as pressure drop, flow vibration, and flow field development in the bundle.
Texas A&M is conducting high-fidelity measurements of pressure and 3D velocity fields and providing experimental benchmark data for validating CFD models used in nuclear safety analysis and licensing for PWRs and small modular reactors (SMRs).