Survey of vessel fluence reduction techniques. Final report
Strategies are examined for slowing PWR pressure vessel embrittlement by reducing the incident fast flux to the vessel through fuel management and core periphery modifications. Such strategies can help to mitigate the consequences of pressurized thermal shock (PTS), a current licensing concern. Design quality analytical techniques were used to calculate power and flux distributions; in contrast to previous work in this area, spatial power redistribution and isotopic depletion effects were explicitly calculated. For most operating PWRs, a factor of 2 reduction in fast flux to the reactor vessel critical welds can be achieved with little or no penalty in power peaking (3% or less). This can be accomplished with low leakage fuel management which places twice-burned fuel in selected peripheral locations near the critical welds. To achieve higher reduction factors, fast neutron reflecting materials must be used in conjunction with low leakage fuel management. In general, a factor of 3 reduction in fast flux is a practical upper limit to what can be reasonably achieved without significant thermal margin degradation.
- Research Organization:
- Combustion Engineering, Inc., Windsor, CT (USA). Power Systems Group
- OSTI ID:
- 6428442
- Report Number(s):
- EPRI-NP-3664; ON: TI85920006
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
210200* -- Power Reactors
Nonbreeding
Light-Water Moderated
Nonboiling Water Cooled
ALLOYS
BARYONS
CONTAINERS
ELEMENTARY PARTICLES
EMBRITTLEMENT
FAST NEUTRONS
FERMIONS
FUEL MANAGEMENT
HADRONS
IRON ALLOYS
IRON BASE ALLOYS
NEUTRON FLUX
NEUTRONS
NUCLEONS
OPERATION
PHYSICAL RADIATION EFFECTS
PRESSURE VESSELS
PWR TYPE REACTORS
RADIATION EFFECTS
RADIATION FLUX
REACTOR COMPONENTS
REACTOR CORES
REACTOR OPERATION
REACTORS
STEELS
WATER COOLED REACTORS
WATER MODERATED REACTORS