Burnup Credit Validation of SCALE-4 Using Light-Water-Reactor Criticals

Conference · Sun Jun 20 04:00:00 EDT 1993

OSTI ID:10147449

Bowman, S. M. ^[1]; Hermann, O. W. ^[1]; Brady, M. C. ^[2]

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1. Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
2. Sandia National Laboratories (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)

The ANSI/ANS 8.1 criticality safety standard recommends validation and benchmarking of the calculational methods used in evaluating criticality safety limits for away-from-reactor applications. The lack of critical experiments with burned light-water reactor (LWR) fuel in racks or in casks necessitates the validation of burnup credit methods by comparison with LWR core criticals. These benchmarks are relevant because they test a methodology`s ability to predict spent fuel isotopic and to evaluate the reactivity effects of heterogeneities and strong absorbers. Data are available to perform analyses at precise state points. As part of the Burnup Credit Analysis Verification (BCAV) Task, the U.S. Department of Energy has sponsored analysis of selected reactor core critical configurations from commercial pressurized-water-reactors (PWRs). The initial analysis methodology used the SCALE-4 code system to analyze a set of reactor critical configurations from Virginia Power`s Slurry and North Anna reactors. However, the analysis procedure was complex and included the calculation of lumped fission products. The methodology has since been revised to simplify both the data requirements and the calculational procedure for the criticality analyst. This revised methodology is validated here by a comparison with three reactor critical configurations from Tennessee Valley Authority`s Sequoyah Unit 2 Cycle 3 and two from Virginia Power`s Slurry Unit 1 Cycle 2.

• Research Organization: Sandia National Laboratories (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), Nuclear Criticality Safety Program (NCSP); USDOE Office of Nuclear Energy (NE), Office of Spent Fuel and Waste Disposition
• DOE Contract Number: AC04-76DP00789; AC05-84OR21400
• OSTI ID: 10147449
• Report Number(s): SAND--93-0250C; TTC--1249; CONF-930601--13; ON: DE93009857
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE WASTES FROM NUCLEAR FACILITIES
21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS
210200
22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS
220100
97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING
99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS
990200
B CODES
BURNUP
Burnup Credit Analysis Verification (BCAV)
COMPUTER CODES
Commercial Pressurized-Water-Reactors (PWRs)
FUEL ASSEMBLIES
MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTERS
N CODES
NUCLEAR DATA COLLECTIONS
NUMBER CODES
Nuclear Criticality Safety Program (NCSP)
O CODES
POWER REACTORS
NONBREEDING
LIGHT-WATER MODERATED
NONBOILING WATER COOLED
PWR TYPE REACTORS
REACTOR KINETICS
REACTOR PHYSICS
S CODES
SEQUOYAH-2 REACTOR
SURRY-1 REACTOR
THEORY AND CALCULATION