Operational Accounting of the Concentration of 3He in Beryllium Blocks During the Formation of the Core Loading of a Research Reactor with a Beryllium Moderator
https://doi.org/10.56304/S2304487X21020139
Abstract
The influence of change in the 3He concentration in the beryllium core masonry on the reactivity margin during various campaigns has been described using the MIR reactor as an example. An algorithm is presented for the on-line calculation of 3He concentrations in beryllium blocks of the core masonry, taking into account the actual distribution of the energy release over the cells of the working channels with fuel assemblies, the operating time at power, and the time of shutdowns between campaigns for refueling the reactor. The analysis of the actual performance of the reactor in the campaigns, which are close in terms of the duration of operation at power and in the loading of the loop channels but differing in times of the reactor stopping between the campaigns, is carried out. Through the study and analysis of experimental data on the operation of the reactor in campaigns of various durations, their characteristic properties have been revealed. The effect of the accumulated helium on the reactivity parameters of the reactor has been estimated. The nature of changes in the reactivity margin when operating at power, depending on the duration of the stay has been predicted using this estimate. In addition, the negative impact of poisoning nuclei on the state of beryllium blocks in a series of short-term campaigns, a feature of which is the excess of the preparation time for the campaign over the duration of the campaign itself, has been described. It has been shown that 3He accumulates from campaign to campaign in a series of short-term campaigns, which inevitably leads to a decrease in the reactivity margin. During long-term operation at power, it has been found that this absorbing nuclide acts as a burnable absorber of neutrons, reducing the rate of loss of the reactivity margin.
About the Authors
P. A. Zaichenko
Dimitrovgrad Engineering and Technological Institute of the National Research Nuclear University MEPhI
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
433511
Ul’yanovskaya oblast
Dimitrovgrad
A. P. Malkov
Dimitrovgrad Engineering and Technological Institute of the National Research Nuclear University MEPhI
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
433511
Ul’yanovskaya oblast
Dimitrovgrad
D. V. Fomin
Dimitrovgrad Engineering and Technological Institute of the National Research Nuclear University MEPhI
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
433511
Ul’yanovskaya oblast
Dimitrovgrad
E. S. Fomina
Dimitrovgrad Engineering and Technological Institute of the National Research Nuclear University MEPhI
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
433511
Ul’yanovskaya oblast
Dimitrovgrad
References
1. Issledovatel’skie yadernye ustanovki Rossii [Russian nuclear research facilities] (N. V. Arhangel’skogo, I. T.Tret’yakova, V. N. Fedulina eds.), Moscow, OAO "NIKIET”, 2012, 330 p.
2. Bekurc K., Virtc K., Nejtronnaya fizika [Neutron physics], Moscow, Atomizdat, 1968, 456 p.
3. Malkov A. P., Pimenov V. V., Kalygin V. V., Kozylkov A. V., Iaderno-fizicheskie protcessy v berillii pod oblucheniem i ikh vliianie na fizicheskie i tekhnologicheskie harakteristiki issledovatelskikh reaktorov [Nuclear processes in beryllium under irradiation and their effect on physical and technological characteristics of research reactors], Sbornik trudov AO “GNTC NIIAR”, 2016, no. 1, pp. 13–25.
4. Kalygin V. V., Malkov A. P., Pimenov V. V., Vliyanie nakopleniya 3 He i 6 Li v berillievyh blokah na nejtronno-fizicheskie harakteristiki reaktora MIR [Influence of the accumulation of 3He and 6Li in beryllium blocks on the neutron-physical characteristics of the MIR reactor], Atomnaya energiya, 2008, vol. 104, no. 2, pp. 84–88.
5. Kalygin V. V., Malkov A. P., Pimenov V. V., Ovchinnikov A. B., Uchet nakopleniya yader litiya-6 i geliya-3 v berillievyh blokah pri opredelenii nejtronno-fizicheskih harakteristik reaktora “MIR” [Accounting for the accumulation of lithium-6 and helium-3 nuclei in beryllium blocks when determining the neutron-physical characteristics of the MIR reactor], Izvestiya vysshih uchebnyh zavedenij. Yadernaya energetika, 2008, no. 3, pp. 31–37.
6. Anisimkov O. V., Kalygin V. V., Malkov A. P., Pimenov V. V., Vliianie otravleniia berilliia na neitronno-fizicheskie harakteristiki reaktora MIR [Effect of beryllium poisoning on the MIR reactor neutronic parameters], Voprosy atomnoi nauki i tekhniki. Ser. Iadernaia tekhnika i tekhnologiia, 1993, vol. 1, pp. 49–52.
Review
For citations:
Zaichenko P.A., Malkov A.P., Fomin D.V., Fomina E.S. Operational Accounting of the Concentration of 3He in Beryllium Blocks During the Formation of the Core Loading of a Research Reactor with a Beryllium Moderator. Vestnik natsional'nogo issledovatel'skogo yadernogo universiteta "MIFI". 2021;10(2):176-182. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.56304/S2304487X21020139
Views:
117
Email this article 