RELAP5-3D
is a modeling and simulation software for predicting the coupled behavior of
the reactor coolant system, the reactor core, and the secondary coolant loop
during various operational scenarios, design basis transients, and postulated transients
that may occur in a nuclear reactor. Although the software originated in 1997
as “Reactor Excursion and Leak Analysis Program” to study transients for
commercial Light Water Reactors, the code has evolved to successfully model
thermal and fluid performance of high-temperature gas-cooled, super-critical CO2,
sodium fast reactors, and molten salt reactors.
Via
numerous international benchmarks and design bases analyses accepted by the
Nuclear Regulatory Commission for reactor licensing, RELAP5-3D has established
itself as the premier system analysis code and is often the standard by which
other system codes are measured. One of
the strengths of RELAP5-3D is its considerable experiment database that
validates the software’s modeling. A system analysis code employs correlations
and models to approximate the performance of a component or system and
experiment data for the physical phenomena provides confidence that the system
analysis code’s correlations/models are sufficient for capturing the fundamental
response of the physical phenomena.
System
analysis codes are intended to be part of an analyst’s toolset. These codes
provide relatively fast analyses of a system.
More in-depth and higher-fidelity analyses are possible with a
computational fluid dynamics (CFD) code. The ideal modeling scenario is to have
the system analysis code predict flow, pressure and temperature in regions of
the system where the flow is well-developed and understood and have the CFD
code predict flow, pressure, and temperature in the more complex regions of the
system. To this end, considerable
investments have been made to facilitate coupling RELAP5-3D to the openFOAM and
STARCCM+ CFD codes. The INL RELAP5-3D
analysis team is contributing to a 2022 IAEA benchmark on system analysis code
and CFD code coupling.
RELAP5-3D
have a wide variety of users. The
software is used for reactor safety analysis, reactor design, simulator
training of reactor operators, and for non-nuclear modeling and simulations. The software is a Department of Energy 10 CFR
810 code, which means that there are guidelines to assure that nuclear
technologies exported from the United States will be used only for peaceful
purposes. RELAP5-3D is distributed via the INL Technology Deployment Office and
requires a license agreement, export control review, and approved use by the
INL Code Oversight Group.
RELAP5–3D News
RELAP5-3D Training and IRUG Seminar - Coming Soon!
Planning is underway for the 2023 RELAP5-3D training and International RELAP5-3D Users Group (IRUG) seminar. The anticipated date is September 2023. More details regarding final date, location, and registration information will be provided soon.
If you have questions or concerns please contact:
Theron Marshall, RELAP5-3D Program Manager
208-526-2979
R53DProgramManager@inl.gov
or
Connie Stevens, RELAP5-3D Project Coordinator
208-526-1325
R53DProjectCoordinator@inl.gov
RELAP5-3D Version 4.4.2 is now available for Windows 10
A RELAP5-3D version 4.4.2 executable has been built on the Windows 10 platform and is available upon request.
RELAP5-3D Windows 7 development has concluded
Future versions of RELAP5-3D will be developed on the Windows 10 platform and further development on the Windows 7 platform will no longer be pursued.
RELAP5-3D Version 4.4.2 released.
The latest version has been developed and released, it is available upon request.
Code Version
The most recent RELAP5-3D release is Version 4.4.2.
For information on how to obtain the code, please contact Morgan Goody at:
Morgan Goody
Technology Transfer and Licensing Specialist
Idaho National Laboratory
PO Box 1625
Idaho Falls, ID 83415
Phone: (208) 526-4637
E-mail:
Morgan.Goody@inl.gov
