Hindawi Publishing Corporation

Science and Technology of Nuclear Installations

Volume 2011, Article ID 802410, 8 pages
doi:10.1155/2011/802410

Research Article
Ludwig: A Training Simulator of the Safety Operation of
a CANDU Reactor

Gustavo Boroni and Alejandro Clausse

CNEA-CONICET and Universidad Nacional del Centro, 7000 Tandil, Argentina

Correspondence should be addressed to Alejandro Clausse, [email protected]

Received 31 August 2010; Accepted 1 December 2010

Academic Editor: Juan Ferreri

Copyright © 2011 G. Boroni and A. Clausse. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution
License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly
cited.

This paper presents the application Ludwig designed to train operators of a CANDU Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) by means
of a computer control panel that simulates the response of the evolution of the physical variables of the plant under normal
transients. The model includes a close set of equations representing the principal components of a CANDU NPP plant, a nodalized
primary circuit, core, pressurizer, and steam generators. The design of the application was performed using the object-oriented
programming paradigm, incorporating an event-driven process to reflect the action of the human operators and the automatic
control system. A comprehensive set of online graphical displays are provided giving an in-depth understanding of transient
neutronic and thermal hydraulic response of the power plant. The model was validated against data from a real transient occurring
in the Argentine NPP Embalse Rı́o Tercero, showing good agreement. However, it should be stressed that the aim of the simulator
is in the training of operators and engineering students.

1. Introduction (ii) support the assessment of the control system func-

tionality before the start-up of the plant,
A training simulator is a useful tool to improve and
(iii) design and validation of operating and commission-
assess the human responses under typical normal and
ing procedures,
abnormal situations of any operator controlled system. The
repeatability and consistency offered by computer simulation (iv) assistance of the continued training, assessment and
make it an ideal tool for setting a standard of operator certification of instructors/trainers and plant control
competence. Particularly in the nuclear industry, after the room operators,
Chernobyl accident, there has been an intensive effort to Likewise, the main benefits of using a TSS are:
improve human performance at nuclear power plants (NPP)
throughout the world. Today, most NPP are required to (i) provision of a validated reference plant model for
maintain a full-scope simulator for regular training and training and evaluation of operators,
assessment of their operators [1]. The standard specifies that (ii) support for rapid evaluation of operating concepts
an NPP Training Simulation System (TSS) shall be capable and procedures prior to their implementation,
of accurately reproducing and predicting the operations and (iii) improvement of the operators’ knowledge of the
variable relationships within the reference plant [3]. coupling between the physical variables of the plant
TSS plays an essential role not only in operators training and the interaction with the control system,
but also in the validation of operation procedures. Some of
the main tasks identified to be supported by the TSS are [1]: (iv) promotion the optimized operation of the plant
during start-up, shutdown and recovery procedures,
(i) training on and testing of the control room human- (v) complement on-site testing of the plant control
system interfaces, system reducing operation and maintenance costs,
2 Science and Technology of Nuclear Installations

(vi) assists in the operators’ training under critical scenar- understanding of transient neutronic and thermal hydraulic
ios, dangerous to realize on real situations, response of the power plant. The model was validated against
(vii) supports the certification of operators in a safe data from a real transient occurring in the plant, showing
environment, good agreement.

(viii) contributes to minimizing equipment damage and

maximizing plant availability, 2. Plant Model
(ix) contributes to the prevention of catastrophic failures Embalse Nuclear Power Plant is a CANDU 600 Pressurized
due to human errors. Heavy Water Reactor located at the shore of an artificial
lake on Rı́o Tercero, Córdoba, Argentina. It employs natural
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has uranium, with heavy water for cooling and moderation. It
provided an extensive documentation related to NPP train- has a thermal power of 2109 MWth and generates 648 MWe
ing simulators [1–8]. In particular, [3] provides guidance of electricity, with a net output of about 600 MWe.
with respect to development, implementation and evaluation The nuclear fuels are inside pressure tubes through which
of training programmes for all NPP personnel, and Appendix coolant circulates at elevated pressures. The coolant, after
1 of [8] includes a list of IAEA publications related to training passing through the pipes of pressure, is sent to the steam
and human resource considerations for commissioning of generator, which transfers its heat to the secondary circuit,
NPP, while [7] categorizes training simulators according to then returned to the reactor under the action of circulation
the scope and objectives as the following. pumps.
The mathematical model of the plant consists of a set
Basic Principles Simulator. A simulator that illustrates gen- of differential algebraic equations that was built according
eral concepts, demonstrating and displaying the fundamen- to the physical mechanisms involved in each component,
tal physical process of a plant. The main goals of using a based on previous works specific to the Argentine HWR
basic principle simulator are to help trainees understand plants [9–11]. Table 1 details the main state variables used
fundamental physical processes, basic operation of complex to represent the different components of the plant, and the
systems, and the overall operation of a plant. main equations of each component are listed in Table 2. It
should be stressed that the objective of this type of simulators
Full-Scope Simulator. A simulator incorporating detailed is training of operators and plant safety inspectors on normal
modelling of those systems of the referenced plant with transients, not the design and accident analysis, for which
which the operator interfaces in the actual control room appropriate codes are available (e.g., RELAP5). Central
environment. requirements of the former are fast execution and flexibility
to perform parametric studies. The general features of the
model are:
Other-Than-Full-Scope Control Room Simulator (OTFSCRS).
A simulator that does not provide the same human-machine (i) primary system divided in a finite number of nodes
interface as does the plant to which it is referenced. determined by the instructor,
The model of the plant thermohydraulic and neutronics (ii) point reactor kinetics with two groups of delayed
characteristics may be the same as that of a full-scope neutrons,
control room simulator, or may be less comprehensive.
Generally, for a simulator of this type, the human-machine (iii) axial cosine power profile in the core,
interface is provided through computer-driven displays and (iv) variable-volumes model of the pressurizer,
either touch screens or mouse control of on-screen buttons. (v) lumped parameter model of the secondary side of the
These displays and controls may be similar to those of the steam generators based on moving enthalpy nodes
referenced plant, or may be simplified. [12],
(vi) steam line divided in a number of nodes determined
Part-Task Simulator. A simulator that may incorporate by the instructor,
detailed modelling of a referenced plant but of only some
(vii) lumped parameter model of the turbine,
systems or portions of systems, thereby enabling a trainee to
be trained specifically on only parts of a job or task. (viii) main control and safety systems relevant during
The present paper presents the development and imple- normal operation [9].
mentation of the TSS LUDWIG, belonging to the OTFSCRS
type, designed to train operators of the Argentine NPP 3. Object-Oriented Implementation
Embalse, based in a model including a close set of equations
representing the essential components of the plant. The The system was designed and implemented following the
design of the application was performed using the object- object-oriented paradigm, which provides properties of
oriented programming paradigm, incorporating an event- reusability and flexibility for further extensions. A one-to-
driven process to reflect the action of the human operators one correspondence between the objects of the simulator and
and the automatic control system. A comprehensive set of the physical components of the plant was enforced (Table 1).
on-line graphical displays are provided giving an in-depth The description of the main objects is the following.
Science and Technology of Nuclear Installations 3

Table 1: List of components and variables of Ludwig.

Component Main state variables Object

P0 : Prompt fission power
Core P1 : Power contribution of the first group of precursors Complete core
P2 : Power contribution of the second group of precursors
ρco : Reactivity contribution from control systems
Reactor control system ρtref : Reactivity contribution from coolant temperature Core control
ρtfuel : Reactivity contribution from fuel temperature
Ml p : Liquid mass
Mv p : Vapor mass
hl p : Enthalpy of the liquid region
Pressurizer Pressurizer
hv p : Enthalpy of the vapour region
p: Pressure
Qh : Heaters power
Ls : Subcooled length
Mr : Mass in the riser
Steam generators Steam generator
Md : Mass in the downcomer
pgv : Pressure
href : Enthalpy of the coolant
Pipe node Pipe
p pn : Pressure
href : Enthalpy of the coolant
Pressure tube tfuel : Fuel temperature Core pipe
p pt : Pressure
href : Enthalpy of the coolant
Pump Pump
p p : Pressure head
Steam line Esl : Power transfer to the turbine Steam line cell
Turbine Et : Thermal power transformed in electricity Turbine
Condenser Qc : Residual thermal power Condenser

Complete Core. The methods are responsible for the calcula- Pump. Represents the primary pumps providing the pres-
tion of the reactor kinetics, the reactivity feedbacks and the sure head that controls the primary flow rate.
corresponding control actions, power delivery to the coolant
in the pressure tubes, and scram. This object provides the
Steam Line Cell. Represents the transport of steam from the
two main modes of operation control of the plant, namely,
steam generators to the turbine.
reactor following turbine and turbine following reactor.

Pressurizer. Controls the pressure of the primary system by Turbine. Calculates the electric power output and the exit
means of the thermodynamic balance controlled by heaters pressure of the turbine.
and safety valves.
Condenser. Calculates and controls the residual thermal
Steam Generator Pipe. Calculates the heat transfer from the power.
primary to the secondary system, including the calculation of
the downcomer level control.
Ludwig. Ludwig was implemented using Delphi which is a
graphical programming language. The development of the
Pipe. Represents the cold and hot legs of the primary system. application consisted of two parallel stages: development
and coding of mathematical model using object-oriented
Core Pipe. Represents the pressure tubes of the reactor core. programming and the development of a graphic interface
4 Science and Technology of Nuclear Installations

Table 2: Main equations of each component of the plant. it can be easily reused, saving time and effort in case of
eventual extensions. The multithread technique was applied
Component Equations for CPU sharing between the system code and the graphic
P = P0 + P 1 + P2 interface to ensure prompt response to the user’s requests.
Simulation codes like Ludwig produce large amounts of
dP0 /dt = ((ρ − β)/Λ)P0 + λC text-based outputs. In the case of complicated plant tran-
Core dC/dt = (β/Λ)P0 − λC sients, it is not easy to obtain simply a clear understanding
of the physical processes underlying this type of output
dP1 /dt = (1/τP1 )(a0 a1 P0 − P1 ) data. Ludwig provides various graphical displays during a
dP2 /dt = (1/τP2 )(a0 a2 P0 − P2 ) transient simulation. This group is designed with two sheets:
“plant mimic” and “calculation data, trend graph, and trip
ρ = ρT + ρCO + ρSC + ρV event control”. Figure 1 shows the home window of Ludwig,
ρT = ρTR + ρTC consisting of a main tool bar and two visualization modes,
L N namely: a set of user controlled popup windows displaying
Reactor control dρTR /dt = ΓTR ( j i (dTRi, j /dt)/LN) of the variables required by the user and a plant mimic
system L N
ρTC /dt = ΓTC ( j i (dT Ci, j /dt)/LN) providing integral visualization. The users can control the
L N visualization and the execution by means of the main tool
dρV /dt = ΓV ( j i (dαRi, j /dt)/LN) bar, where buttons for run, stop, pause, restart, and replay
−3
dρCO /dt = −7.5 · 10 (F − 0.5/22.5) are provided. In addition a snapshot function similar to the
restart function is available, which does not have a fixed
dMLP /dt = WSU + WCC − WEB
frequency for saving the data.
WSU = WESTA − VP (dρL /dT)(dTP /dt) The plant mimic module is designed to examine the
Pressurizer
major output variables through a user-designed plant mimic
2
WCC = CR (πDPR /4)((1 − αV )/vL )
as shown in Figure 1. The mimic is equipped by elementary
2
WEB = CB (πDPR /4)(αL /vV ) graphic display units, such as digital meters, level gauges, and
dial meters. The indicators added to the background image
dL1 /dt = (2Wa − (4Q p L1 /(h f − ha )L p ))/ρ f A p
are mapped one by one with the specific output variables that
Steam generators dL2 /dt = 4Q p (2L1 − L2 )/ρ f A p (h f − ha )L p were selected for experts.
Figure 2 shows the “calculation data” sheet, designed to
dM p /dt = Wa − W p
display numerical values of variables of interest for the user,
Pipe node M(dh/dt) = W(hIN − h) which can be selected from a tree-view list. The output
variables are updated at every calculation time step. In
Pressure tube M(dh/dt) = QTH + W(hIN − h)
addition, users can check the value of a selected variable in
dE/dt = Wt (hg (Pgv ) − h) the status bar by locating the mouse cursor on the specific
Secondary system node.
Wt = Wv − Wb
A set of graphic windows show the transient behaviour
dEt /dt = Wt (h − ht ) − Pot of selected variables with time. The user can specify variables
in the code input data before the simulation, and also can
ht = ηht + (1 − η)h
Turbine interactively ask for additional graphs during the simulation
ht = h f (Pc ) + xh f g (Pc ) by clicking the right button of the mouse on the sheet (left
x = (sg (Pturb ) − s f (Pc ))/s f g (Pc )
in Figure 2). Multiple variables can be displayed in a single
graphic window, and the number of trend graph windows is
Condenser τc (dQc /dt) = Wt (ht − ha )+Wb (hg (Pgv ) − ha ) − Qc not limited. The scales of the axis are automatically adjusted
during the simulation.

easy to manipulate. To ensure high accessibility and porta- 4. Validation of the Model
bility, a personal computer with Windows was chosen as
platform. Delphi is a powerful and flexible graphical pro- The simulator was validated against experimental data
gramming language that provides an efficient environment recorded during two different normal transient of the NPP
to develop user interfaces and engineering data display. Embalse Rı́o Tercero. The first event took place on December
Each component of the plant (pressurizer, core, pipes, 1988 with the reactor operating at nominal power. A failure
etc.) was implemented in an individual class encapsulated of the power supply affected a control bar introducing a
with well-defined interfaces. Special modules (e.g., plant constant reactivity input of 0.45 mk/sec, and simultaneously
mimic, numerical calculation, and interactive control) were two of the main primary pumps went out of service. Data of
integrated to produce a closed and consistent system. This the response of the neutronic power and the pressure at the
modular approach reduces the programming effort and exit headers of the pressure tubes is available for 40 seconds.
the complexity of the design. Because each component is Figure 3 shows the evolution of the reactor power and the
independent and self-contained with well-defined interfaces, primary pressure. The event begins at t = 10 sec. There is a
Science and Technology of Nuclear Installations 5

Generador 1

Generador 4
Generador 2

Potencia total
3,000,000,000
2,500,000,000
2,000,000,000
Watts 1,500,000,000
1,000,000,000
194◦ C 200◦ C
500,000,000
200◦ C 194◦ C 0
10 20 30 40 50 60
Tiempo
200◦ C 194◦ C
Avance de la simulación
194◦ C Pot.: 5% 200◦ C
Reac.: 0 3%

Figure 1: Ludwig mimic interface of the plant.

power peak of 115% of the nominal value lasting about 1 sec. the primary system (Figure 6). The “bump” at 20 sec is a
The latter triggers the reactor scram, which in turn induces a consequence of the control action of the heaters.
switch of the operation mode of the plant from normal to Figure 7 shows the response of one of the steam generator
alternative. Due to the negative reactivity injection during during the transient. Due to the switch of control mode
the scram the power decreases to 5% of the nominal value in to turbine-following-reactor, the turbine power demand
35 sec. On the other hand, the pressure rises due to the power decreases, and, consequently, the feedwater and steam flows
increase and the loss of flow. This triggers the opening of the also decrease. The level of the steal generator decreases due to
pressurizer valves, but only when the power decreases the the decrease of the primary temperature and the secondary
primary pressure decreases. Later, when the power reaches pressure.
5% of the nominal value, the response of pressure control The second event occurred on February 1984 with the
system can be appreciated. It can be seen that the comparison reactor operating at 88% of nominal power. This time a
with the plant data is very good. failing control bar introduced a constant reactivity input of
Figures 4 to 6 show the evolution of different relevant 0.35 mk/sec. The evolution of the primary and secondary
variables illustrating the response of the plant during the variables are depicted in Figures 8 and 9, showing similar
transient. The primary flow rate (Figure 4) decays in 20 trends as the 1988 event.
seconds to its half value following to the loss of two of
the primary pumps. The total reactivity is dominated by
the scram system (Figure 5). The decomposition in the 5. Conclusions
temperature and void contributions shows the influence
of the physical variables on the neutronic response. The The training simulator Ludwig of the CANDU Nuclear
pressurizer level is reduced due to the pressure drop of Power Plant Rı́o Tercero was presented. The system was
6 Science and Technology of Nuclear Installations

Presion en functión del tiempo

9,900,000

9,800,000
Encendido total de los calefactores
9,700,000 Apagado de los calefactores
Apertura de la válvula
9,600,000 Apertura total de la válvula
Presión
9,500,000

9,400,000

9,300,000

9,200,000

9,100,000

9,000,000

8,900,000

8,800,000
Presión [Pa]

8,700,000

8,600,000

8,500,000

8,400,000

8,300,000

8,200,000

8,100,000

8,000,000

7,900,000

7,800,000

7,700,000

7,600,000

7,500,000

10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55
Tiempo

Figure 2: Ludwig graphic window. Tree of variables (left) and display of data (right).

20
140
120
Primary pressure (kg/cm2 )

Power (% nominal)

Primary flow rate (100 kg/s)

120 90
15

100 60

80 30 10

60 0
0 10 20 30 40 50
t (s)
5
Figure 3: Event 1. Reactor power (•) and primary pressure (◦) 0 10 20 30 40 50
responses to a positive reactivity injection and the loss of two t (s)
primary pumps. The curves correspond to the simulation results.
Figure 4: Evolution of the primary flow rate showing the effect of
the primary pumps failure during event 1.

completely designed and implemented following the object- model integrates the main variables of the major components
oriented paradigm in Delphi language, providing graphical of the plant in order to capture the interrelation and coupling
interfaces to assist the learning process. The mathematical between them during normal transients. The system was
Science and Technology of Nuclear Installations 7

0.02 140

1.2

Primary pressure (kg/cm2 )

0
120

Power (% nominal)
0.9
−0.02
100
0.6
−0.04

80
−0.06 0.3

−0.08 60 0
0 10 20 30 40 50
t (s)
−0.1
0 10 20 30 40 50 Figure 8: Event 2. Reactor power (•) and primary pressure (◦)
t (s) responses to a positive reactivity injection and the loss of two
primary pumps. The curves correspond to the simulation results.
Figure 5: Event 1. Reactivity response during the event of positive
reactivity insertion. Reactivity due to control failure (dash red),
scram system (solid red), coolant temperature (solid blue), void
(dash blue), fuel temperature (dash black), and total reactivity
3
(solid black).
1

Secondary flow rate (%)

2 0.8
12
SG level (m)

0.6
1

9 0.4
Pressurizer level (m)

0
0.2

6
−1 0
0 10 20 30 40 50
t (s)
3
Figure 9: Event 2. Evolution of the steam-generator water level,
the feedwater flow (full circles and solid curve), and the steam flow
(empty circles and dashed curve).
0
0 10 20 30 40 50
t (s)

Figure 6: Evolution of the pressurizer level during event 1.

validated against real data of safety shutdown events of the
plant, showing good agreement. Due to the flexibility of the
code, it can easily be extended to other CANDU plants, and
3 also it can be coupled with more sophisticated codes like
100 RELAP5.
Secondary flow rate (%)

2 80
SG level (m)

Nomenclature
60
1 Ap: Area of the secondary side of the steam
40 generator
ao : Decay power fraction of the fission products at
0 20 steady state
a1 , a2 : Power fraction of each neutron delay group
0 (a1 + a2 = 1)
0 10 20 30 40 50
C: Concentration of delayed neutrons
t (s)
CB : Rising bubble velocity
Figure 7: Event 1. Evolution of the steam-generator water level, CR : Liquid drops velocity
the feedwater flow (full circles and solid curve), and the steam flow DPR : Pressurizer diameter
(empty circles and dashed curve). E: Energy of the steam line
8 Science and Technology of Nuclear Installations

Et : Turbine energy ρTC : Reactivity associated to the fuel temperature

f: Saturated liquid index ΓTR : Coolant temperature reactivity coefficient
F: Flow rate to the liquid control zones ΓTC : Fuel temperature reactivity coefficient
g: Saturated vapour index ΓV : Void reactivity coefficient
h: Specific enthalpy α: Void fraction
ha : Feedwater enthalpy αV : Void fraction in the pressurizer vapour zone
hIN : Specific enthalpy in the donor cell αL : Void fraction in the pressurizer liquid zone
i: Primary node index ρf : Saturated liquid density
j: Primary loop index η: Efficiency
L1 , L2 : Subcooled lengths of the secondary side of τc : Characteristic time delay.
the steam generator
Lp: Secondary side of the steam generator length Acknowledgments
M: Coolant mass
MLP : Mass contained in the liquid control zones This project was supported by Autoridad Regulatoria
Mp: Liquid mass in the secondary side of the Nuclear, Universidad Nacional del Centro and Comisión
steam generator Nacional de Energı́a Atómica. The authors appreciate the
P: Total thermal power help of G. Guido Lavalle and M. Cuadrado in the initial stages
Pc : Condenser pressure of the project.
Psg : Pressure in the secondary side of the steam
generator
Pturb : Turbine pressure
References
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P 1 , P2 : Delayed neutrons power (two groups) plant personnel,” IAEA Technical Documents 1411, 2004.
Pot: Electric power [2] “Simulators for training nuclear power plant personnel,” IAEA
Qc : Power transferred to the lake Technical Documents 685, 1993.
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QTH : Net power transferred to the coolant power plant training simulators,” IAEA Technical Documents
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s: Specific entropy
[5] “A systematic approach of human performance in nuclear
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WCC : Condensation rate [9] A. Meoqui, Análisis digital de la dinámica de la planta nuclear
de Embalse (Córdoba) durante transitorios de operación normal,
WEB : Evaporation rate
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λ: Decay constant of the precursors of delayed [12] P. DiMarco, A. Clausse, and R. T. Lahey, “Analysis of nonlinear
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Λ: Prompt time Systems, vol. 6, no. 3, pp. 191–216, 1991.
τ p1 , τ p2 : Decay delays of the fission products
ρCO : Control reactivity
ρV : Void fraction reactivity
ρSC : Scram reactivity
ρTR : Reactivity associated to the coolant
temperature
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