1. Reactivity monitoring of the accelerator driven VENUS-F subcritical reactor with the "current-to-flux" method.
- Author
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Marie, N., Lecouey, J.L., Lehaut, G., Chevret, T., Billebaud, A., Chabod, S., Doligez, X., Kochetkov, A., Krása, A., Lecolley, F.R., Mellier, F., Uyttenhove, W., Vittiglio, G., and Wagemans, J.
- Subjects
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CONTROL elements (Nuclear reactors) , *MONTE Carlo method , *BORON carbides , *NEUTRON sources , *FISSION counters - Abstract
Highlights • The "current-to flux" method for monitoring ADS subcriticality was successfully tested experimentally. • Spatial effects affecting the reactivity estimation can be corrected with Monte Carlo simulations. • The robustness and precision of the correction technique is demonstrated. Abstract In this article, we evaluate the quality and robustness of a method envisaged for the on-line monitoring of the subcriticality of an ADS, called the "current-to flux" (CTF) method. For this evaluation, we performed a dedicated experiment at the GUINEVERE facility. It is hosted at the SCK-CEN and consists of the subcritical VENUS-F reactor coupled to a continuous external neutron source provided by the GENEPI-3C accelerator. During this experiment, the reactor control rods were moved in various patterns, and the subsequent dynamical evolutions of the reactor reactivity were monitored using nine fission chambers (FCs). The space-energy effects that bias the reactivity values are corrected using a procedure based on simulations computed with the Monte Carlo neutron transport code MCNP. We investigate the precision of this correction procedure by comparison with a reactivity value extracted with the beam interruption technique and we demonstrate its insensitivity to the simplifications made on the VENUS-F reactor modeling and to a simulation key parameter such as the boron carbide density filling the control rods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2019
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