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A novel reduced order model (ROM) for incompressible flows is developed by performing a Galerkin projection based on a fully (space and time) discrete full order model (FOM) formulation. This ‘discretize-then-project’ approach requires no pressure stabilization technique (even though the pressure term is present in the ROM) nor a boundary control technique (to impose the boundary conditions at the ROM level). These are two main advantages compared to existing approaches. The fully discrete FOM is obtained by a finite volume discretization of the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations on a collocated grid, with a forward Euler time discretization. Two variants of the time discretization method, the inconsistent and consistent flux method, have been investigated. The latter leads to divergence-free velocity fields, also on the ROM level, whereas the velocity fields are only approximately divergence-free in the former method. For both methods, accurate results have been obtained for test cases with different types of boundary conditions: a lid-driven cavity and an open-cavity (with an inlet and outlet). The ROM obtained with the consistent flux method, having divergence-free velocity fields, is slightly more accurate but also slightly more expensive to solve compared to the inconsistent flux method. The speedup ratio of the ROM and FOM computation times is the highest for the open cavity test case with the inconsistent flux method.

A novel reduced order model (ROM) for incompressible flows is developed by performing a Galerkin projection based on a fully (space and time) discrete full order model (FOM) formulation. This 'discretize-then-project' approach requires no pressure stabilization technique (even though the pressure term is present in the ROM) nor a boundary control technique (to impose the boundary conditions at the ROM level). These are two main advantages compared to existing approaches. The fully discrete FOM is obtained by a finite volume discretization of the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations on a collocated grid, with a forward Euler time discretization. Two variants of the time discretization method, the inconsistent and consistent flux method, have been investigated. The latter leads to divergence-free velocity fields, also on the ROM level, whereas the velocity fields are only approximately divergence-free in the former method. For both methods, stable and accurate results have been obtained for test cases with different types of boundary conditions: a lid-driven cavity and an open-cavity (with an inlet and outlet). The ROM obtained with the consistent flux method, having divergence-free velocity fields, is slightly more accurate but also slightly more expensive to solve compared to the inconsistent flux method. The speedup ratio of the ROM and FOM computation times is the highest for the open cavity test case with the inconsistent flux method.

Fluid flows through rod bundles are observed in many nuclear applications, such as in the core of Gen IV liquid metal fast breeder nuclear reactors (LMFBR). One of the main features of this configuration is the appearance of flow fluctuations in the rod gaps due to the velocity difference in the sub-channels between the rods. On one side, these pulsations are beneficial as they enhance the heat exchange between the rods and the fluid. On the other side, the fluid pulsations might induce vibrations of the flexible fuel rods, a mechanism generally referred to as Flow Induced Vibrations (FIV). Over time, this might result in mechanical fatigue of the rods and rod fretting, which eventually can compromise their structural integrity. Within the SESAME framework, a joint work between Delft University of Technology (TU Delft), Ghent University (UGent), and NRG has been carried out with the aim of performing experimental measurements of FIV in a 7-rods bundle and validate numerical simulations against the obtained experimental data. The experiments performed by TU Delft consisted of a gravity-driven flow through a 7-rods, hexagonal bundle with a pitch-to-diameter ratio P/D=1.11. A section of 200 mm of the central rod was made out of silicone, of which 100 mm were flexible. Flow measurements have been carried out with Laser Doppler Anemometry (LDA) whereas a high-speed camera has measured the vibrations induced on the silicone rod. The numerical simulations made use of the Unsteady Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations (URANS) approach for the turbulence modelling, and of strongly coupled algorithms for the solution of the fluid-structure interaction (FSI) problems. The measured frequency of the flow pulsations, as well as the mean rod displacement and vibration frequency, have been used to carry out the benchmark., RST/Reactor Physics and Nuclear Materials