Back to Search
Start Over
Signatures of plutonium diversion in Molten Salt Reactor dynamics.
- Source :
-
Annals of Nuclear Energy . Sep2021, Vol. 160, pN.PAG-N.PAG. 1p. - Publication Year :
- 2021
-
Abstract
- • Diversion of plutonium results in changes in kinetic parameters. • Dynamic models reveal signatures of plutonium removal in an Molten Salt Reactor. • Plutonium diversion ca be seen in Molten Salt Reactor frequency response. Safeguarding a Molten Salt Reactor (MSR) is an underexplored research topic. The high temperature, radiation, and corrosive nature of the fuel salt make installing and using instrumentation difficult. This study introduces a new innovative way of using the reactor's frequency response to determine if plutonium is diverted. As a low enriched uranium fueled MSR undergoes burnup, plutonium builds up in the fuel salt and increasingly contributes to fissions. As a result, the kinetic parameters, mean neutron generation time and delayed neutron fraction, evolve with depletion. These changes are large enough to be discerned as unique patterns in the MSR system frequency response. Likewise, a specific pattern is seen if there is a removal of plutonium. Given the simplicity of establishing a frequency response of an operating MSR, this method presents a breakthrough in MSR safeguards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Subjects :
- *MOLTEN salt reactors
*PLUTONIUM
*DELAYED neutrons
*URANIUM as fuel
*FAST reactors
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 03064549
- Volume :
- 160
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- Annals of Nuclear Energy
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 150850592
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anucene.2021.108370