The Virtual Test Bed (VTB) Repository: A Library of Reference Reactor Models Using NEAMS Tools

TLDR

The U.S. Department of Energy is developing modeling and simulation tools for next‑generation nuclear reactors, and the Virtual Test Bed—launched by the National Reactor Innovation Center with NEAMS—mirrors physical test beds like DOME and LOTUS to support the advanced reactor community. The project, involving teams at Idaho National Laboratory and Argonne National Laboratory, aims to use state‑of‑the‑art simulation tools to model a wide range of reactor designs. The models are automatically tested, cover five advanced reactor types with 12 subvariants, and span steady‑state core multiphysics simulations to integrated plant loss‑of‑flow transient analyses.

Abstract

With the next generation of nuclear reactors under development, modeling and simulation tools are being developed by the U.S. Department of Energy to support their design, licensing, and future operation. Mirroring the physical test beds currently under construction (i.e., Demonstration and Operation of Microreactor Experiments, known as DOME, and Laboratory for Operating and Testing in the United States, known as LOTUS), the Virtual Test Bed was launched by the National Reactor Innovation Center in collaboration with the Nuclear Energy Advanced Modeling and Simulation (NEAMS) program to support the advanced reactor community. This collaborative effort, which involves multiple teams at both Idaho National Laboratory and Argonne National Laboratory, aims to use state-of-the-art simulation tools to model a wide range of reactor designs. These models are automatically tested to ensure their continued functionality as the tools are further developed. Examples are extensively documented, each acting as a tutorial for applying the relevant NEAMS tools to that reactor design. Currently, five advanced reactor types (with a total of 12 specific design subvariants) are simulated by a variety of models. These models range from steady-state, core multiphysics simulations to integrated plant analysis during loss-of-flow transients. To our knowledge, this is the first publicly available library of multiphysics advanced reactor models distributed with extensive documentation and maintained through continuous integration.