Multiphysics for nuclear energy applications using a cohesive computational framework

Survey and Assessment of Computational Capabilities for Advanced (Non-LWR) Reactor Mechanistic Source Term Analysis.

“…Although this higher computational expense may not be warranted for every source term modeling strategy, a high-fidelity reference solution may be necessary for certain problems such as complex species transport flows. Additionally, Nek5000, Pronghorn, and other codes have been cohesively coupled for multiscale problems using the MOOSE framework, proving the utility of using codes of similar software structure [39].…”

RHEA v1.0: Enabling fully coupled simulations with hydro-geomechanical heterogeneity

“…homogenising (Blum et al, 2005(Blum et al, , 2009. Recent research has identified the need to improve modelling of coupled hydro-geomechanical systems (Lecampion et al, 2018;Grigoli et al, 2017;Birkholzer et al, 2019), and particularly also the importance of introducing high-resolution details to improve the accuracy of numerical simulations (McMillan et al, 2019). However, integrating spatially distributed material properties to numerical tools is not trivial because the shape of geological formations can consist of complex geometries produced by natural processes acting over a long period.…”

“…solving the fluid flow while keeping the mechanics fixed, then solving the mechanics while keeping the fluid flow fixed. While this can be executed on separate meshes with different time-stepping schemes; this feature is not explored in the current article (Martineau et al, 2020).…”

The MOOSE Multiphysics Computational Framework for Nuclear Power Applications: A Special Issue of Nuclear Technology

“…Because of this cohesiveness, MOOSE provides a simplified path to tightly couple physics through a unique data transfer system designed explicitly for multiscale, multiphysics simulations employing multiple software codes. This data transfer approach, called MOOSE MultiApps and 13 controls the multiphysics integration between BISON, OpenMC, and Nek5000 to deliver coupled high-resolution multiphysics simulations in pebble bed reactors. OpenMC provides the power distribution within the pebbles, which is then transferred to BISON for accurate fuel performance calculations.…”

“…BISON and Nek5000 are coupled through solution exchange of heat flux and temperature at the boundary. Another significant effort is BlueCRAB, the U.S. NRC's MOOSE-Wrapped App 13 Finally, the recent development of a powerful new MOOSE feature, an automatic differentiation (AD) capability, dramatically simplifies and speeds up MOOSE-based code development. An efficient solution for nonlinear equations using Newton's method requires the accurate computation of the Jacobian matrix.…”