Nuclear fuel in the reactor pressure vessel is engaged in a fission chain reaction which produces heat heating the water in the primary coolant loop by thermal conduction through the fuel cladding the hot primary coolant is pumped into a heat exchanger called the steam generator where it flows through hundreds or thousands of small tubes heat is transferred through the walls of these tubes. They are cooled and moderated by high pressure liquid water e g. Pressurized water reactors use a reactor pressure vessel rpv to contain the nuclear fuel moderator control rods and coolant.
Pressure in pressurized water reactor a pressurizer is a key component of pwrs. 16mpa in case of pwrs and therefore the reactor vessel must withstand high pressures. Most of commercial power reactors are light water reactors pwrs and bwrs which are cooled and moderated by high pressure liquid water e g.
The reactor pressure vessel is the pressure vessel containing the reactor core and other key reactor internals. The rpv must resist brittle fracture under all operational and design base upset. Reactor pressure vessel rpv integrity must be guaranteed since the rpv contains the nuclear fuel core and is therefore an important part of the did barrier.
24 5 1 pressurized light water reactors and boiling water reactors. Tipping in understanding and mitigating ageing in nuclear power plants 2010. During the operation of a nuclear power plant the material of the reactor pressure vessel is exposed to neutron radiation especially to fast neutrons which results in localized.
The reactor pressure vessels are the highest priority key components in nuclear power plants the reactor pressure vessel houses the reactor core and because of its function it has direct safety significance. Russian soviet era rbmk reactors have each fuel assembly enclosed in an individual 8 cm diameter pipe rather than having a pressure. A reactor pressure vessel rpv in a nuclear power plant is the pressure vessel containing the nuclear reactor coolant core shroud and the reactor core classification of nuclear power reactors.