Monitoring the level dynamics in a hydraulic loop through the use of a coaxial reflectometric sensor and a low pulsatility pump

Control systems design for nuclear facilities may be a challenging task when the optimal choice of sensors is concerned. Also, the level control of a simple hydraulic loop component may offer short/medium-term transient level dynamics. This requires several features, such as a fast sensor response, on-line measurement and analysis of some non-linearity that are crucial for its control. In this paper, a theoretical and experimental study is proposed, concerning the application of the Time Domain Reflectometric technique to a hydraulic loop presenting the above-mentioned strict features. A second-order nonlinear ODE controlling the system level dynamics is theoretically analyzed, and experimentally observed through the use of a coaxial reflectometric sensor and a novel pump with low pulsatility flux.