Skip to main content
U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Experimental evaluation of the MIT-SNL period-generated minimum time control laws for the rapid adjustment of reactor power

Conference ·
OSTI ID:5625746

The rapid adjustment of reactor neutronic power has recently been achieved by developing control laws that determine the actuator mechanism velocity necessary to produce a specified reactor period. Designated as the 'MIT-SNL Period-Generated Minimum Time Control Laws,' these relations are closed-form expressions of general applicability. In particular, if there is no limitation on the available rate of change of reactivity, these laws can be used to achieve virtually any desired power profile including time optimal ones. The innovative aspect of these laws is that the rate of change of reactivity rather than the reactivity itself is used as the control signal. For example, relative to a time-optimal response, these laws function by altering the rate of change of reactivity so that the instantaneous period is stepped from infinity to its minimum allowed value, held at that value until the desired power level is attained, and then stepped back to infinity. The response is time-optimal because the power adjustment is continuously made at the maximum allowed rate.

Research Organization:
Massachusetts Inst. of Tech., Cambridge (USA); Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (USA)
DOE Contract Number:
AC04-76DP00789
OSTI ID:
5625746
Report Number(s):
SAND-87-7175C; CONF-880122-4; ON: DE88003792
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

Similar Records

Evaluation of 'period-generated' control laws for the time-optimal control of reactor power
Conference · Sun Jan 31 23:00:00 EST 1988 · IEEE Trans. Nucl. Sci.; (United States) · OSTI ID:6968424

Experimental demonstration of the MIT-SNL (Massachusetts Institute of Technology-Sandia National Laboratories) period-generated minimum time control laws for rapid increases of reactor power from subcritical conditions
Conference · Sun Dec 31 23:00:00 EST 1989 · OSTI ID:7176635

Power cutbacks as an alternative to scrams; An application of the MIT-SNL period-generated minimum time control laws
Journal Article · Sun Mar 31 23:00:00 EST 1991 · IEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers); (United States) · OSTI ID:5105130