Numerical study on Prandtl number dependence of thermal convection in an internally heated pool

Large-eddy simulations have been conducted to study natural convection in a corium pool. The study focuses on a hemispherical pool with uniform volumetric heat generation, complemented by isothermal cooling on all exterior surfaces. The internal Rayleigh number (Rai), correlated with the internal heat generation, is fixed at 1015. The Prandtl numbers (Pr) examined vary from 0.32 to 10. While previous experimental studies have explored internally heated pool convection primarily in the Pr≥3 range using liquids, the present research extends the investigation to the Pr