Numerical design of the Seed-Blanket Unit for the thorium nuclear fuel cycle

Oettingen, Mikołaj; Skolik, Katarzyna

doi:10.1051/e3sconf/20161000067

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 8 publications

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“…Galahom et al [15] explored the potential benefi ts of using thorium-based PWR fuel from a neutron analysis perspective. Oettingen and Skolik [16] focused on designing a numerical seed-blanket unit for thorium nuclear fuel cycles in the PWR 17 × 17 fuel assembly designed according to the Radkowsky thorium fuel concept.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparison of the neutronic properties of the (Th-²³³U)O₂, (Th-²³³U)C, and (Th-²³³U)N fuels in small long-life PWR cores with 300, 400, and 500 MW_th of power

Lapanporo,

Su’ud,

Mustari

2024

Nukleonika

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The neutronic characteristics of (Th-233U)O2, (Th-233U)C, and (Th-233U)N have been compared in small long-life pressurized water reactors (PWRs). Neutronic calculations were carried out at 300 MWth, 400 MWth, and 500 MWth with two cladding types: zircaloy-4 and ZIRLO (Zr low oxygen). They were performed using the Standard Reactor Analysis Code (SRAC) and JENDL-4.0 nuclide data, dividing the reactor core into three fuel zones with varying 233U enrichment levels, ranging from 3% to 9% and fluctuating by 1%, employing the PIJ module at the fuel cell level and the CITATION module at the reactor core level. In addition, 231Pa was added as burnable poison (BP). The (Th-233U)N fuel demonstrated superior criticality compared to the other fuel types, as it consistently achieves critical conditions throughout the reactor’s operating cycle with excess reactivity <1.00% dk/k for several fuel configurations at the 300 MWth and 400 MWth power levels. Moreover, the (Th-233U)N and (Th-233U)C fuels exhibited similar and flatter power density distribution patterns compared to the (Th-233U)O2 fuel. The power peaking factor (PPF) value was relatively higher for (Th-233U)O2 fuel than the other two fuels. The (Th-233U)N fuel exhibited the most negative Doppler coefficient, followed by (Th-233U)C and (Th-233U)O2 fuels. Analysis of burnup levels revealed that the (Th-233U)O2 fuel achieved significantly higher burnup than the other two fuels.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparison of the neutronic properties of the (Th-²³³U)O₂, (Th-²³³U)C, and (Th-²³³U)N fuels in small long-life PWR cores with 300, 400, and 500 MW_th of power

Lapanporo,

Su’ud,

Mustari

2024

Nukleonika

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Analysis of the SWOT matrix as a strategy for implementing the Ap-Th1000 Reactor in Brazil

Araujo da Silva,

Stefani,

Silva

2024

Braz. J. Rad. Sci.

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This article analyzes the SWOT Matrix for the implementation of the AP-Th1000 reactor with thorium fuel, aiming at a future replacement of the current nuclear reactors that use uranium as fuel by thorium. There was a need for an in-depth study of the national and international literature linked to the Brazilian reality. After that, specific meetings were held to detect all possible situations of the 4 main points of the SWOT matrix. During the sessions, which averaged 1 hour, the authors' industrial and academic expertise was demonstrated in competencies such as creativity, collaboration, effective communication, openness and tolerance, quick thinking, synthesis ability, problem focus, and flexibility during the discussions of over 50 items found in the analysis of the 4 points of the SWOT matrix. Each meeting was divided into three parts. The first part, which would be the Creative phase; and a second part, which would be the Critical phase; and, finally, the third phase, where ideas are filtered for the permanence of those that were better founded and of better acceptance. Then, the aspects listed were classified into 4 categories: Strengths (S), Weaknesses (W), Opportunities (O), and Threats (T). After the classification, a ranking of priorities was made, in descending order of importance, according to the authors, of the weaknesses and threats, neutralization suggestions were made. Finally, the data obtained were analyzed. We concluded through the SWOT analysis, we can observe an expressive amount of benefits of using the AP1000 reactor with MOX of Thorium and Uranium in the development of nuclear energy generation technologies in Brazil.

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On the Microcrack Propagation and Mechanical Behavior of Granite Induced by Thermal Cycling Treatments

Zhang

Cao

et al. 2022

Processes

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Deep geothermal energy is a renewable and environmentally friendly resource, and the hot dry rock in a geothermal reservoir is subjected to thermal cycling treatment. Thermal cycling treatment can cause thermal stresses in the rock matrix and result in thermal cracking, which significantly influence the physical and mechanical properties of a rock. To investigate the influence of thermal cycling treatment on the microcrack propagation and mechanical behavior of a granite rock, a series of physical and mechanical tests were performed on nontreated and treated granite samples. The testing results show that the mass, density, and P-wave velocity of granite decrease with heating temperature and cycling time increase, while the volume of the samples increases significantly. The UCS and elastic modulus of the granite declined from 178.65 MPa and 20.09 GPa to 24.58 MPa and 3.81 GPa after treatment at 500 °C for 30 thermal cycling times, respectively. The degradation trends of the UCS and the elastic modulus of the granite can be characterized by the heating temperature and the thermal cycling times. High temperature and frequent thermal cycling treatment can induce microcrack propagation within the granite, which causes the failure of the samples and leads a transformation of granite from brittleness to ductility.

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Numerical design of the Seed-Blanket Unit for the thorium nuclear fuel cycle

Cited by 3 publications

References 8 publications

Comparison of the neutronic properties of the (Th-²³³U)O₂, (Th-²³³U)C, and (Th-²³³U)N fuels in small long-life PWR cores with 300, 400, and 500 MW_th of power

Comparison of the neutronic properties of the (Th-²³³U)O₂, (Th-²³³U)C, and (Th-²³³U)N fuels in small long-life PWR cores with 300, 400, and 500 MW_th of power

Analysis of the SWOT matrix as a strategy for implementing the Ap-Th1000 Reactor in Brazil

On the Microcrack Propagation and Mechanical Behavior of Granite Induced by Thermal Cycling Treatments

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Numerical design of the Seed-Blanket Unit for the thorium nuclear fuel cycle

Cited by 3 publications

References 8 publications

Comparison of the neutronic properties of the (Th-233U)O2, (Th-233U)C, and (Th-233U)N fuels in small long-life PWR cores with 300, 400, and 500 MWth of power

Comparison of the neutronic properties of the (Th-233U)O2, (Th-233U)C, and (Th-233U)N fuels in small long-life PWR cores with 300, 400, and 500 MWth of power

Analysis of the SWOT matrix as a strategy for implementing the Ap-Th1000 Reactor in Brazil

On the Microcrack Propagation and Mechanical Behavior of Granite Induced by Thermal Cycling Treatments

Contact Info

Product

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Comparison of the neutronic properties of the (Th-²³³U)O₂, (Th-²³³U)C, and (Th-²³³U)N fuels in small long-life PWR cores with 300, 400, and 500 MW_th of power

Comparison of the neutronic properties of the (Th-²³³U)O₂, (Th-²³³U)C, and (Th-²³³U)N fuels in small long-life PWR cores with 300, 400, and 500 MW_th of power