Multi-phase Flow and Thermal-hydraulics Lab (MFTL)

The laboratory, led by Dr. Yang Liu performs experimental and computational studies on various multiphase flow and reactor thermal-hydraulics topics. In the first area, we study the full spectrum of two-phase flow regimes that are of practical interest, ranging from bubble nucleation to film and droplet dynamics. Research activities include advanced instrumentation development, experimental studies, and model development for both 1-D system codes and 3-D CFD codes. In the area of reactor thermal-hydraulics, the focus is on reactor safety related issues. Specific topics include air entrainment in the Emergency Core Cooling System, flow structure development in rod bundles, flow induced vibration on piping elements, passive safety systems, and spent fuel pool safety.

Further information can be found at the MFTL Laboratory website.

Experimental facilities

  • Rectangular Two-phase Flow Loop
  • Circular Two-phase Flow Loop
  • High Speed Imaging System
  • X-Ray Two-Phase Flow Measurement System

Modeling & Simulation

  • Numerical Simulation of Annular Flow using Volume of Fluid (VOF) Method using interFoam (openFOAM package)
  • CFD Analysis of Spent Fuel Pool using ANSYS FLUENT