SLSF local fault safety experiment P4: summary and conclusions. [Sodium Loop Safety Facility]

Sodium Loop Safety Facility (SLSF) experiment P4 in ETR was performed to investigate the consequences of an upper-bound or worse-than-worst case local fault configuration. P4 was intended to bound the consequences of credible subassembly faults by ejecting molten fuel into a 37-pin bundle of full-length Fast Test Reactor (FTR)-type pins and failing fuel with the potential for further cladding and fuel-pin damage. In addition to ejecting a large amount of molten fuel at or near full power, experiment objectives were to evaluate the severity of molten fuel-coolant interactions (MFCIs) and to demonstrate that any resulting blockage could either be tolerated during continued power operation or detected by global monitors in time to prevent significant fuel failure propagation.