Thermal analyses of uniformly heated fuel pin cell, inverted cell, and dual surface cooled cell geometries using comsol multi-physics

Abstract

This study examines the thermal performance of pin cells, inverted cells, and dual surface-cooled cells under high heat conditions. We analysed key thermal properties, including linear heat generation rate and heat flux, by applying a uniform volumetric heat generation rate (VHGR) of 4·107 W/m³ to a pin of length 0.1 m. The results revealed a radial temperature drop of 65 °C for the inverted fuel pin, 26 °C for the normal pin, and 11°C and 13°C for the inner and outer surfaces of the dual surface-cooled pin, respectively. Thus, the dual surface-cooled pin had the lowest thermal loss, while the inverted pin had the highest thermal loss, despite achieving a higher surface temperature than the maximum of the dual surface-cooled pin