GO-VIKING

Gathering expertise On Vibration ImpaKt In Nuclear power Generation

It is only possible to avoid inevitable and irreversible climate changes if massive and immediate reductions in greenhouse gas emissions are made (IPCC, 2021). Nuclear safety is one of the ten priority actions to be performed to accelerate the energy system transformation and to reach future low-carbon energy system.

As nuclear power plants in Europe are ageing, extending their lifetime provides the necessary time for the transition to a low-carbon energy system. Flow-induced vibrations may cause failure in main nuclear steam supply system components such as fuel assemblies and steam generators. An in-depth understanding and prediction of FIV phenomena will assure the safe operation of the existing plants, especially those involved in long-term operation programs.

The GO-VIKING project aims to improve the safety of contemporary reactors and the design evaluation of new concepts, as well as to generate and disseminate knowledge on flow-induced vibrations among nowadays and upcoming stakeholders in the nuclear field.

The GO-VIKING project is coordinated by GRS, a non-profit organisation. It is financed mainly by carrying out publicly funded research projects and by providing expert opinions.

GO-VIKING Lecture Series: Fluid-Structure interaction in Nuclear Applications

The lecture series titled “Fluid-Structure Interaction in Nuclear Applications” was held at the von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics from March 31 to April 3, 2025.

Fluid-structure interaction (FSI) is essential in many industrial applications and is actively studied in the nuclear sector. Knowledge and understanding of FSI and Fluid-Induced Vibration (FIV) are critical to estimating the lifetime of the different components (pipelines, heat exchangers, turbines, etc.) concerning fatigue, cracking, possible failure modes, and mechanical wear. Recently, the use of numerical tools to simulate FIV has received large interest due to the availability of more computational resources and the necessity to analyze complex configurations with more details. This Lecture Series provides a detailed background to welcome novices in the field and a comprehensive overview of recent developments of computational FSI in various industrial applications.

Renowned experts from around the globe—many of whom are contributors to the EU-funded GO-VIKING project—shared insights on critical aspects of FSI and its relevance to understanding FIV in diverse contexts. The series was co-edited by M.T. Ramandi, L. Koloszar, and Ph. Planquart from the von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium.

This initiative is part of the GO-VIKING project, which is supported by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme under grant agreement No. 101060826.

Reference:

VKI LS 2025-03, "Fluid-Structure Interaction in Nuclear Applications," M.T. Ramandi, L. Koloszar, Ph. Planquart, eds, von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, ISBN-13 978-2-87516-218-2, https://doi.org/10.35294/ls2025-03

Table of Contents

Degroote, J. – Ghent University, Belgium
Introduction to fluid-structure interaction (FSI) & flow-induced vibration (FIV), https://doi.org/10.35294/ls2025-03-degroote

Veber, P. – Vattenfall AB, Sweden
FIV in nuclear reactor components/facilities, https://doi.org/10.35294/ls2025-03-veber

Vivaldi, D. – Autorité de sûreté nucléaire et de radioprotection (ASNR), PSN-RES/SEMIA/LSMA, France
The importance of understanding FIV/FSI in nuclear reactor components, https://doi.org/10.35294/ls2025-03-vivaldi

Papukchiev, A. – Gesellschaft für Anlagen- und Reaktorsicherheit (GRS) gGmbH, Germany
Analytical methods for the evaluation of flow-induced vibrations, https://doi.org/10.35294/ls2025-03-papukchiev

Nabawy, M.R.A. – The University of Mancherster, United Kingdom
Measurement techniques for FSI/FIV in single-phase flows, https://doi.org/10.35294/ls2025-03-nabawy
Planquart, Ph. & Akkurt, M.C. – von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
Best practices to investigate single-phase flow-induced-vibration in bundlegeometries through laboratory experiments, https://doi.org/10.35294/ls2025-03-planquart

Benhamadouche, S. – EDF R&D, France
Computational methods to predict single phase fluid structure interaction and flow induced vibrations phenomena, https://doi.org/10.35294/ls2025-03-benhamadouche

El Bouzidi, S. – Canadian Nuclear Laboratories, Canada
Considerations for numerical simulations of single-phase flow-induced vibration problems, https://doi.org/10.35294/ls2025-03-el-bouzidi

Zwijsen, K. – Nuclear Research and Consultancy Group (NRG), the Netherlands
Reduced-Order models for fluid-structure interaction/flow-induced vibrations, https://doi.org/10.35294/ls2025-03-zwijsen

Fiore, M. – von Karman Institute for Fluid Dynamics, Belgium
Uncertainty quantification for nuclear thermal hydraulics, https://doi.org/10.35294/ls2025-03-fiore

Frederix, E.M.A. – Nuclear Research and Consultancy Group (NRG), the Netherlands
Numerical analysis of two-phase flows relevant to FIV, https://doi.org/10.35294/ls2025-03-frederix

Benguigui, W. - EDF R&D, France
Simulation strategies to analyze FIV in multiphase flows, https://doi.org/10.35294/ls2025-03-benguigui

Fichet, V. – Technical Center Framatome, France
Experimental techniques to characterize FIV in multiphase flows, https://doi.org/10.35294/ls2025-03-fichet

Hassan, M. – University of Guelph, Canada
Best practices for experimental characterization of FIV in multiphase flows in bundle
geometries, https://doi.org/10.35294/ls2025-03-hassan

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