Applications and Challenges of Meshless Methods (SPH/MPS) in the Analysis of Nuclear Reactors

Meshless methods represent a significant advancement in computational methodologies applied to various fields, particularly nuclear reactor safety. These methods, including Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) and Moving Particle Semi-implicit (MPS), leverage Lagrangian particles to provide a flexible framework for capturing complex fluid behaviours such as free-surface dynamics, deformation, rupture, and coalescence. Despite being frequently applied in nuclear reactor safety and accident analysis in recent years, meshless methods are often challenged by issues such as low accuracy and destabilization, making their improvement crucial.

This Research Topic explores meshless methods in nuclear reactor safety analysis and delves into challenges, advancements, and applications. The Topic covers the evolution of meshless methods and key breakthroughs, such as improvements in stability, accuracy, and the handling of surface tension. By bringing together this knowledge, this Research Topic will highlight future research directions and offer insights into how meshless methods can shape innovations in nuclear reactor safety analysis.

Contributions must add to the sound development of meshless methods in nuclear reactor safety and severe accident analysis.

Topics within the scope of this collection include, but are not limited to:
• Enhancements in stability and accuracy to mitigate unphysical oscillations and instabilities
• Investigations of free surfaces, solid walls, inflow, and outflow boundary conditions
• Development of surface tension models for simulating melt migration, bubble motion, etc.
• Multi-phase flow modeling, covering scenarios such as gas-liquid two-phase flow and solid-liquid two-phase flow
• Analysis of fluid–structure interaction
• Applications of multi-resolution techniques
• Specific applications in nuclear reactor safety and severe accident analysis, including core melting and corium spreading.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• FAIR² DATA Direct Submission
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: Nuclear Reactor Safety, Severe Accident Analysis, Meshless method, Particle method, Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics method, Moving Particle Semi-implicit method, Stability and accuracy, Boundary condition, Surface tension

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.