Differential Rod Worth Profile Affected by Axial Blankets in FFTF (Fast Flux Test Facility)

Conference · Sun Jun 10 04:00:00 EDT 1990 · Transactions of the American Nuclear Society

OSTI ID:6024776

Tang, E. L.; Knutson, B. J.

The central feature of the Fast Flux Test Facility (FFTF) is the fast test reactor (FTR), which is a liquid-sodium-cooled fast reactor providing high fast-neutron flux for irradiation testing of fuels and materials. The FTR also provides a means to develop breeder reactor core components and to gain reactor systems operating experience for future liquid-metal fast breeder reactors (LMFBRs). In the FTR core, there are 82 incore positions (within rows 1 through 6) available for driver fuel assemblies and/or test assemblies. In addition, there are three safety rods and six control rods located in rows 3 and 5, respectively, in the three symmetric core sectors. The FFTF has been successfully and continuously operated for more than 11 reactor cycles. For the first 8 cycles, the core loadings were composed of the mixed-oxide driver fuel assemblies and some test assemblies. These assemblies have an active core section of 91.5 cm with 15.2-cm upper and lower reflectors. Neutronically, these assemblies are essentially symmetrical about the core center, and the differential control rod worth profiles were developed with this symmetry. Experimentally, these differential rod profiles proved to be satisfactory for these core loadings. The primary objective of this paper is to present the experimentally observed effects of axial blankets on the symmetric differential rod worth profiles.

• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), Nuclear Criticality Safety Program (NCSP)
• OSTI ID: 6024776
• Report Number(s): CONF-900608
• Conference Information: Journal Name: Transactions of the American Nuclear Society Journal Volume: 61
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS
210500* -- Power Reactors
Breeding
ACCIDENTS
Axial Blankets
BARYONS
BREEDING
BREEDING BLANKETS
BURNUP
CONTROL ROD WORTHS
CRITICALITY
Core Loadings
DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS
ELEMENTARY PARTICLES
EPITHERMAL REACTORS
EQUATIONS
FAST NEUTRONS
FAST REACTORS
FERMIONS
FFTF REACTOR
FUEL ELEMENT FAILURE
Fast Flux Test Facility (FFTF)
Fast Test Reactor (FTR)
HADRONS
IRRADIATION
LIQUID METAL COOLED REACTORS
Liquid-Metal Fast Breeder Reactors (LMFBRs)
Liquid-Sodium-Cooled Fast Reactor
MATERIALS TESTING
NEUTRON DIFFUSION EQUATION
NEUTRON FLUX
NEUTRONS
NUCLEAR FUEL CONVERSION
NUCLEONS
Nuclear Criticality Safety Program (NCSP)
OPERATION
PHYSICS
RADIATION FLUX
REACTOR ACCIDENTS
REACTOR COMPONENTS
REACTOR CORES
REACTOR OPERATION
REACTOR PHYSICS
REACTORS
RESEARCH AND TEST REACTORS
RESEARCH REACTORS
SODIUM COOLED REACTORS
Symmetric Differential Rod Worth Profiles
Symmetry
TEST REACTORS
TESTING
THREE-DIMENSIONAL CALCULATIONS