[en] Considering the hypothetical core melt down scenario for a light water reactor (LWR) a possible failure mode of the reactor pressure vessel (RPV) and its failure time has to be investigated for a determination of the loadings on the containment. Several experiments have been performed accompanied with material properties evaluation, theoretical, and numerical work. At the Institute Of Safety Research of the FZR a finite element model has been developed simulating the thermal processes and the viscoplastic behaviour of the vessel wall. An advanced model for creep and material damage has been established and has been validated using experimental data. The thermal hydraulic and the mechanical calculations are sequentially and recursively coupled. The model is capable of evaluating fracture time and fracture position of a vessel with an internally heated melt pool. The model was applied to pre- and post test calculations for the FOREVER test series representing the RPV of a PWR in the scale of 1:10. These experiments were performed at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. The results of the calculations can be summarised as follows: The creeping process is caused by the simultaneous presence of high temperature (>600 C) and pressure (>1 MPa). The hot focus region is the most endangered zone exhibiting the highest creep strain rates. The exact level of temperature and pressure has an influence on the vessel failure time but not on the failure position. The failure time can be predicted with an uncertainty of 20 to 25%. This uncertainty is caused by the large scatter and the high temperature sensitivity of the viscoplastic properties of the RPV steel. Contrary to the hot focus region, the lower centre of the vessel head exhibits a higher strength because of the lower temperatures in this zone. The lower part moves down without significant deformation. Therefore it can be assumed, that the vessel failure can be retarded or prevented by supporting this range. The development of a gap between melt crust and vessel wall could not be proofed. First calculations for a PWR geometry were performed to work out differences and commonalities between prototypic scenarios and scaled experiments. The results of the FOREVER-experiments cannot be transferred offhand to PWR geometry. The geometrical, mechanical and thermal relations cannot be scaled in the same way. Because of the significantly higher temperature level, a partial ablation of the vessel wall has to be to expected in the PWR scenario, which is not the case in the FOREVER tests. (orig.)