International Journal of Applied Sciences & Development
E-ISSN: 2945-0454
Volume 5, 2026
Thermo-mechanical Behavior Analysis of Multipurpose Research Reactor Fuel Assembly Using Fluid–Structure Interaction (FSI) with ANSYS Workbench: Comparative Validation Between Fluent and CFX
Authors: , ,
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Abstract: Bangladesh desires to upgrade its nuclear research capacity by commissioning a 10–20 MW multi-purpose research reactor (MPRR) to be fueled by VVR-KN low-enriched uranium (LEU) fuel in terms of the limitation of its current 3 MW TRIGA Mark-II reactor, specifically in fuel supply issues. In this study, the fuel assembly is solved by applying a fluid–structure interaction (FSI) approach in ANSYS Workbench to analyze coupled thermal, hydraulic and structural responses under steady-state operating conditions. The solution integrates computational fluid dynamics (CFD) with structural mechanics to analyze coolant flow behavior, temperature distribution, pressure drop, energy gains and resulting fuel rod deformations, stress, strain. Comparative analysis is carried out between ANSYS Fluent and ANSYS CFX solvers to verify consistency and accuracy of results. Comparative validation confirms the robustness of FSI framework that accurately predicts thermo-mechanical safety margins of MPRR safety assembly.
Pages: 1-15
DOI: 10.37394/232029.2026.5.1