Preliminary design model of reactor pressure vessel for high-temperature gas-cooled reactor

High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor is one of the Generation IV reactors, which is currently one of the most advanced small modular reactors and ready for commercialization, such as indicated by the criticality of HTR-PM 210 Mwe in September 2021. The safety of reactors relies on the Triso fuels, which creates low power density in the core. The surrounding reflector graphite of the core maintains the inertial behavior during the accident, avoiding any core melt and minimizing any primary circuit structural failure damage. These fuels and graphite reflectors are inside the reactor pressure vessel, including the required instrumentation and shutdown system. This means that the pressure vessel design and characteristics are essential to maintain the overall safety of the HTGR operation during normal and accident conditions. Therefore, this research aims to demonstrate the design of the HTGR RPV using appropriate software modeling. The research is carried out to model the reactor pressure vessel of the HTGR using Solidwork software based on the conceptual design of the experimental power reactor in Indonesia. Before the model was developed, the literature review and preliminary investigation were also conducted to understand the latest trend technology. The model is later characterized by providing static mechanical loads under normal operating conditions. The results show that the design conceptual which is implemented in the 3D model can satisfy the safety and provide additional confirmation parameters for further investigation and detailed design.