NCSU pressurized water reactor physical simulator

A 1/9-linear-scale operating model of a nuclear power plant that has been designed and constructed at North Carolina State University is described. The thermal-hydraulic response of the simulator is driven by a physical system that has been scaled to model the operation of a commercial pressurized-water-reactor plant. Computers control power, flows, pressures, and levels; monitor 32 channels of analog input and 48 channels of digital status and simulate the action of plant protection systems. The loop instrumentation system and the data acquisition and control system are detailed, and the planned utilization of the model is described. >