Radiolysis Gas Formation and Pressure Increase During a Criticality Excursion

Conference · Sun Jun 04 04:00:00 EDT 1989 · Transactions of the American Nuclear Society

OSTI ID:5227517

Barbry, F.; Rozain, J. P.

During a criticality excursion occurring in fissile solution, most of the energy released is transformed into thermal heating and the formation of gas by radiolytic decomposition of water. In addition, for fast kinetics excursions, a pressure increase in the internal solution is observed. This pressure increases and hydrogen generation can pose a safety concern. To understand and to model these phenomena, the Commissariat a l'Energie Atomique (CEA) Institute for Nuclear Protection and Safety has carried out specific experiments at the SILENE facility to: measure the pressure increase accompanying the power peak and determine the volume of radiolysis gas formed as a function of the energy and medium. These results are interrelated, and it should be possible to make use of pressure, energy, and radiolysis gas data to set up an equation of state of fissile solution and, consequently, to improve currently existing calculation models.

• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), Nuclear Criticality Safety Program (NCSP)
• OSTI ID: 5227517
• Report Number(s): CONF-890604--
• Conference Information: Journal Name: Transactions of the American Nuclear Society Journal Volume: 59
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS
22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS
220600 -- Nuclear Reactor Technology-- Research
Test & Experimental Reactors
220900* -- Nuclear Reactor Technology-- Reactor Safety
CALCULATION METHODS
CEA
CHEMICAL RADIATION EFFECTS
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
CHEMISTRY
CRITICALITY
Criticality Excursion
DECOMPOSITION
ELEMENTS
ENRICHED URANIUM REACTORS
EXPERIMENTAL REACTORS
FISSILE MATERIALS
FISSION
FISSIONABLE MATERIALS
FRENCH ORGANIZATIONS
Fissile Solution
HEATING
HYDROGEN
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
MATERIALS
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NONMETALS
NUCLEAR REACTIONS
Nuclear Criticality Safety Program (NCSP)
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PRESSURE DEPENDENCE
QUANTITY RATIO
RADIATION CHEMISTRY
RADIATION EFFECTS
RADIOLYSIS
REACTOR SAFETY
REACTORS
RESEARCH AND TEST REACTORS
RESEARCH REACTORS
Results
SAFETY
SAMPLING
SILENE REACTOR
TRANSIENTS
US DOE
US ORGANIZATIONS
WATER
ZERO POWER REACTORS