Modeling Nuclear Fuel Behavior for Enhanced Reactor Performance and Safety

BRENT LEWIS, KHALED SHAHEEN, AND MICHAEL J. WELLAND

Since nuclear fuel is a key enabling technology for the enhancement of reactor safety, performance, and economics, Dr. Lewis and his team at RMC are conducting research on nuclear fuel behavior. Because of its multiphysics capabilities, Dr. Lewis chose COMSOL for his team to model the complexities of nuclear fuel behavior. “COMSOL allows us to quickly focus on the model development and given application with its multiphysics capability and its ability for numerical solution of the governing (coupled) partial differential equations for heat and mass transport,” said Dr. Lewis.