• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제55권9호
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• pp.3464-3471
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• 2023

The Uranium/Molybdenum metallic fuel has been proposed as promising advanced fuel concept especially in the dispersed fuel geometry. The fuel is manufactured in the form of small fuel droplets (particles) placed in a fuel pin covered by a matrix. In addition to fuel particles, the pin contains voids necessary to compensate material swelling and release of fission gases from the fuel particles. When investigating this advanced fuel design, two important questions were raised. Can the dispersed fuel performance be analyzed using homogenization without significant inaccuracy and what size of fuel drops should be used for the fuel design to achieve optimal utilization? To answer, 2D burnup calculations of fuel assemblies with different fuel particle sizes were performed. The analysis was supported by an additional 3D fuel pin calculation with the dispersed fuel particle size variations. The results show a significant difference in the multiplication factor between the homogenized calculation and the detailed calculation with precise fuel particle geometry. The recommended fuel particle size depends on the final burnup to be achieved. As shown in the results, for lower burnup levels, larger fuel drops offer better multiplication factor. However, when higher burnup levels are required, then smaller fuel drops perform better.

• 대한기계학회:학술대회논문집
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• 대한기계학회 2001년도 춘계학술대회논문집C
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• pp.548-553
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• 2001

Recently, much attention is imposed on the design of the fuel assemblies in the Pressurized Light Water Reactor (PWR). Spacer grid is one of the main structural components in a fuel assembly. It supports fuel rods, guides cooling water and protects the system from the external impact loads. Various space grids have been proposed and new designs are also being created. In this research, a new spacer grid is designed by the axiomatic approach. The Independence Axiom is utilized for the design. For conceptual design, functional requirements (FRs) are defined and corresponding design parameters (DPs) are found to satisfy FRs in sequence. Overall configuration and shapes are determined in this process. Detail design is carried out based on the result of the axiomatic design. For the detail design, the system performances are evaluated by using linear and nonlinear finite element analysis. The dimensions are determined by optimization. Some commercial codes are utilized for the analysis and design.

• Tribology and Lubricants
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• 제39권3호
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• pp.94-101
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• 2023

Automotive wheel bearings are a critical component of vehicles that support their weight and facilitate rotation. Life and stiffness are significant performance characteristics of wheel bearings. Designing wheel bearings involves finding optimal design variables that satisfy both performances. CO₂ emission reduction and fuel efficiency regulations attribute to the recent increase in design requirements for lightweight and compact automotive parts while maintaining performance. However, achieving a design that maintains performance while reducing weight poses challenges, as performance and weight are generally inversely proportional. In this study, we perform design optimization of automotive wheel bearings considering life and stiffness. We develop a program that calculates the basic rated life and modified rated life based on international standards for evaluating the life of wheel bearings. We develop a regression equation using regression analysis to address the time-consuming stiffness analysis during repetitive analysis. We perform ANOVA and main effect analyses to understand the statistical characteristics of the developed regression equation. Furthermore, we verify its reliability by comparing the predicted and test results. We perform design optimization using the developed life prediction program, stiffness regression equation and weight regression equation. We select bearing specifications and geometry as design variables, weight as the cost function, and life and stiffness as constraints. Through design optimization, we investigate the influence of design variables on the cost function and constraints by comparing the initial and optimal design values.

• 한국원자력학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국원자력학회 2004년도 추계학술발표회 발표논문집
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• pp.123-124
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• 2004

• 동력기계공학회지
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• 제17권6호
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• pp.149-155
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• 2013

Since bio-diesel oil has a merit that it satisfies both demand of substitution for fossil fuel and reduction in carbon dioxide emission, it is widely used in diesel engines by blending in gas oil in small quantity. It is needed to reduce in NOx emission in some way or others if blending ratio of bio-diesel oil is going to increase, because it is demerit that bio-diesel oil emits more NOx emission than gas oil. In this study, it was accomplished to optimize 3 factors what effect on NOx emission as blending ratio of bio-diesel oil, injection timing and common rail pressure with an introduction of a design of experiments, in order to minimize a number of tests. It was cleared that to introduce the design of experiments was very available in NOx optimization.

• 대한기계학회:학술대회논문집
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• 대한기계학회 2000년도 춘계학술대회논문집A
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• pp.731-736
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• 2000

An optimal design method is adopted for a spacer grid in nuclear power plant. It is made of punched sheet metal process, functioning as springs and dimples supporting fuel rods. For stress analysis of the assembled fuel rod support, a typical cell out of the repeated pattern in the assembly is modeled using 4-node shell elements. A commercial code, ABAQUS, is used for detailed analysis of contacting phenomena with friction. For the optimization, design varibles are taken from geometric parameters representing the shape of the bent leaf spring part and mating contact region with fuel rod. Objective function is considered in relation to mechanical functions and durability. Maximum yon Mises stress is considered in relation to constrained contact stress.

• 한국CDE학회논문집
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• 제17권2호
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• pp.71-78
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• 2012

Recently, the ratio of fuel cost to the operational cost of a ship is increasing according to the increase of the international oil price. Thus, many studies are being made to reduce the cost; for example, a method for acquiring the sea state information, a method for estimating fuel consumption, a method for determining the ship's optimal route, and so on. However, these studies were not incorporated together and being independently made in different fields. In this study, by improving and incorporating such studies, a method for determining a ship economic route based on the acquisition of the sea state and estimation of fuel consumption was proposed. To evaluate the applicability of the proposed method, it was applied to an optimal routing problem of the ocean area including many islands. The result shows that the proposed method can yield the economic route minimizing fuel consumption.

• 한국원자력학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국원자력학회 2004년도 추계학술발표회 발표논문집
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• pp.107-108
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• 2004

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제31권4호
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• pp.365-374
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• 1999

A nuclear design of fission moly production targets for a research reactor, HANARO was peformed. It was found that the use of MCNP-4A, ORIGEN-2 code was reliable for the analysis of production characteristics of $^{99}$ Mo in a target fuel at an irradiation holes. A parametric study was done for the optimization of target location, target dimension, target shape and fuel materials. It was shown that a fuel thickness was the most sensitive parameters and electro-deposited target gave the highest 99Mo yield ratio. A pellet target with vibro-compaction powder, however, showed the largest production capacity and better engineering feasibility even with less yield ratio. Ten kinds of optimized target design for both LEU and HEU satisfied all the given design constraints. The most favorable design was the HEU ring-shaped electro-deposited target, considered the safety limit, production yield, chemical process easiness, yield ratio, and amount of radioactive waste.

• 한국자동차공학회논문집
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• 제23권1호
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• pp.34-40
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• 2015

A stack in the proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) consists of bipolar plates, a membrane electrode assembly, a gas diffusion layer, a collector and end plates. High current density is usually obtainable partially from uniform temperature distribution in the fuel cell. A size optimization method considering the thermal expansion effect of stacked plates was developed on the basis of finite element analyses. The thermal stresses in end, bipolar, and cooling plates were calculated based on temperature distribution obtained from thermal analyses. Finally, the optimization method was applied and optimum thicknesses of the three plates were calculated considering both fastening bolt tension and thermal expansion of each unit cell (72 cells, 5kW). The optimum design considering both thermal and mechanical loads increases the thickness of an end plate by 0.64-0.83% the case considering only mechanical load. The effect can be enlarged if the number of stack increases as in an automotive application to 200-300 stacks.