Advanced method for neutronics and system code coupling RELAP, PARCS, and MATLAB for instrumentation and control assessment

Abstract The operation of current nuclear power plants (NPP) and the deployment of advanced nuclear reactors rely on digital instrumentation and control (I&C) and information technology systems. The growing use of digital systems implies considerable security and safety challenges, as the usual standard codes used for designing, licensing, and analyzing accidents over the last few decades have been limited in terms of I&C features. This study presents an innovative method to couple PARCS/RELAP5 with the high-performance language MATLAB/Simulink. As a proof-of-concept proof, a 2772 MWt pressurized water reactor modeled using the coupled package PARCS/RELAP5 is simulated. A supervisory system is implemented that allows MATLAB/Simulink to oversee the nuclear codes for exchanging online data. In addition, I&C high-level computing tools are added to the NPP model, endorsing the application of “on-the-fly” decision logics. The coding strategy does not change the nuclear binary source codes, as the PARCS/RELAP5 codes have been validated for design and licensing. By running open- and closed-loop cases for control rod assembly movement, we found that PARCS/RELAP5 capabilities for digital I&C modeling and simulations can be extended by adding MATLAB/Simulink flexibility.