Dr. Xu Han

China Nuclear Power Engineering Co., Ltd., China

Bio

Xu Han achieved his B.Eng. in Nuclear Science and Engineering from Harbin Engineering University in 2002, his M.Eng. in Nuclear Science and Engineering from Tsinghua University in 2006, and his PhD in Nuclear Science and Engineering from Shanghai Jiao Tong University in 2011. Afterward, he joined China Nuclear Power Engineering Co., Ltd. (CNPE), where he has been engaged in nuclear power system design, safety analysis, and reactor thermal-hydraulics research. During this period, from 2018 to 2019, he worked on machine learning and AI technology in the nuclear energy field at North Carolina State University as a senior visiting scholar. Currently, his research focuses on advanced nuclear power system design, thermal-hydraulic experimental research, computational fluid dynamics simulation, and the development of ultra-high-temperature structural materials. Notably, he has made significant breakthroughs in the application of heat pipe heat exchanger technology in recent years. Throughout his career in both industry and academia, he has published more than 20 papers in EI and SCI journals and has been granted over 50 patents.

Title

Application of Separated Plate Heat Pipe (SPHP) in NPP System Design and Generalization of Passive Concept

Abstract

Following the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident, particularly the hydrogen explosion at Unit 4, the safety of spent fuel pools garnered heightened attention, and the global nuclear industry extensively studied post-accident cooling of spent fuel pools consequently. During this period, the distinguished passive capabilities of heat pipes led to their superior adoption as primary heat exchangers, gradually becoming a technical consensus in the whole field. Starting in 2016, based on the series of PEX (Passive Experimental Facility), the group led by China Nuclear Power Engineering Co., Ltd. (CNPE) commenced continuous research on heat pipe mechanisms, the design of separate plate heat pipe heat exchangers (SPHP), and the overall characteristics of the Passive Spent Fuel Pool Cooling System (PSFS). And in 2023, CNPE proposed the conceptual design for the Linglong One PSFS system finally.  In the future, SPHP will also support subsequent models of Hualong in achieving wholly air cooling of the containment after accidents. This depends on the development of high-temperature-resistant aluminum alloy materials and the further improvement of SPHP heat transfer capacity. This is precisely the other topic of this discussion, the Generalization of the Passive Concept, which aims to enhance functionality by all possible technical means while maintaining the fully passive characteristics of the system and equipment.