FEA Project

>>

Back

Large Nuclear Waste Processing Vessels:

A series of large waste flud tanks were seismically evaluated under rules developed by the ASCE 4-98 (Seismic Analysis of Safety-Related Nuclear Structures and Commentary) and BNL 52361 (Seismic Design and Evaluation Guidelines for the Department of Energy High-Level Waste Storage Tanks and Appurtenances). This work was done for the end client DOE under contract with Bechtel, Inc.  The vessels are destined for the River Protection Project at Handford, WA. 

Finite element analysis was performed using the response-spectrum technique of eigenvalue excitation and summation was employed. Using a design basis earthquake (DBE) spectrum as the base excitation, the tanks were analyzed for structural integrity under ASME guidelines. 

This type of analysis is commonly used for earthquake certification by various state and federal agencies.

Modeling notes: due to the complexity of the numerical routine, care was exercised in the generation of the FEA models using a complex array of solid, plate, beam, rod, and rigid link elements. After several design revisions for each tank, the final tank models meet all ASME pressure vessel allowable stress guidelines.