Comparison and Physical Interpretation of MCNP and TART Neutron and Gamma Monte Carlo Shielding Calculations for a Heavy-Ion ICF System
For heavy-ion beam driven inertial fusion ''liquid-protected'' reactor designs such as HYLIFE-II, a mixture of molten salts made of F{sup 10}, Li{sup -6}, Li{sup 7} and Be{sup 9} (called flibe) allows small chambers and final-focus magnets closer to the target with superconducting coils suffering higher radiation damage, though they can stand only a certain amount of energy deposited before quenching. This work has been primarily focusing on verifying that total energy deposited by fusion neutrons and induced gamma rays remain under such limit values and the final purpose is the optimization of the shielding of the magnetic lens system from the points of view of the geometrical configuration and of the physical nature of the materials adopted. The system is analyzed in terms of six geometrical models going from simplified up to much more realistic representations of a system of 192 beam lines, each focused by six magnets. A 3-D transport calculation of the radiation penetrating through ducts, that takes into account the complexity of the system, requires Monte Carlo methods. The quantities analyzed, using the two codes MCNP and TART include: neutron mean free path and total path length dependence on energy, energy deposited by neutrons and gamma photons, values of the total fluence integrated in the whole energy range, and the neutron spectrum in different zones of the system. The technical nature of the design problem and the methodology followed were presented in a previous paper by summarizing briefly the results for the deposited energy distribution on the six focal magnets. Now a much more extensive comparison of the performances of the two codes for different configurations of the system is discussed, separating the n and {gamma} contributions, in the light of the physical interpretation of the results in terms of first flight and of scattered neutron fluxes, of primary {gamma} and of secondary {gamma} generated by inelastically scattered or radiatively captured neutrons. The final conclusions indicate some guidelines and suggest possible improvements for the future neutronic design of a heavy ion beam fusion facility named IRE (Integrated Research Experiment) to be realized in the US.
- Research Organization:
- Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Director. Office of Science. Office of Fusion Energy Sciences; Engineering School of Bologna Grant (US)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC03-76SF00098
- OSTI ID:
- 841098
- Report Number(s):
- LBNL-50998; HIFAN 1171; R&D Project: Z41001; TRN: US200513%%331
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 5th International Topical Meeting on Industrial Radiation and Radioisotope Measurement Application, Bologna (IT), 06/09/2002--06/14/2002; Other Information: PBD: 1 Jul 2002
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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