Critical masses of highly enriched uranium diluted with matrix material

Journal Article · Sat Jul 01 00:00:00 EDT 2000 · Transactions of the American Nuclear Society

OSTI ID:20104481

Sanchez, R; Kimpland, R; Jaegers, P; Butterfield, K; Casson, W; Bounds, J; Myers, W

Radioactive waste containing fissile material is frequently encountered in decontamination and decommissioning activities. Most of this waste is placed in containers or drums and stored in storage facilities. The amount of fissile material in each drum is generally small because criticality safety limits have been calculated with computer transport codes utilizing cross-section sections with large uncertainties. To the best of their knowledge, no experimental critical mass data are available to ensure the correctness of these calculations or any calculations for systems containing fissile material ({sup 235}U, {sup 239}Pu, or {sup 233}U) in contact with matrix material such as Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}, CaO, SiO{sub 2}, Al, MgO, etc. The experiments discussed in this paper establish the critical masses of highly enriched uranium foils diluted in various X/{sup 235}U ratios with polyethylene and SiO{sub 2}, polyethylene and aluminum, and polyethylene and MgO. In addition, these critical mass experimental data will be used to validate computer transport codes and cross-section data.

• Research Organization: Los Alamos National Lab., NM (US)
• OSTI ID: 20104481
• Journal Information: Transactions of the American Nuclear Society, Vol. 82; Conference: 2000 Annual Meeting - American Nuclear Society, San Diego, CA (US), 06/04/2000--06/08/2000; Other Information: PBD: 2000; ISSN 0003-018X
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

42 ENGINEERING
11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE WASTES, AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES
RADIOACTIVE WASTES
DECOMMISSIONING
FISSILE MATERIALS
CRITICALITY
SAFETY
CRITICAL MASS
URANIUM 235
PLUTONIUM 239
URANIUM 233
MATRIX MATERIALS
ALUMINIUM OXIDES
CALCIUM OXIDES
SILICON OXIDES
ALUMINIUM ALLOYS
MAGNESIUM OXIDES
POLYETHYLENES