The Oak Ridge Isotope Generation and Depletion – Automatic Rapid Proccessing (ORIGEN-ARP) deterministic code has been extensively utilized for determining nuclide concentrations at various specific burnup values for a variety of nuclear reactor designs. Given nuclide concentrations or ratios, such calculations can be used in nuclear forensics and nuclear non-proliferation applications to reverse-calculate the type of reactor and specific burnup of the fuel from which the nuclides originated. Recently, Los Alamos National Laboratory has released a version of its probabilistic radiation transport code, MCNPX 2.6.0, which incorporates a fuel burnup feature which can also determine, via the probabilistic Monte Carlo method, nuclide concentrations as a function of fuel burnup. This dissertation compares the concentrations of 46 nuclides significant to nuclear forensics analyses for different reactor types using results from the ORIGEN-ARP and the MCNPX 2.6.0 codes. Three reactor types were chosen: the Westinghouse 17x17 Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR), the GE 8x8-4 Boiling Water Reactor (BWR), and the Canadian Deuterium Uranium, CANDU-37, reactor. Additionally, a sensitivity study of the different reactor parameters within the MCNPX Westinghouse 17x17 PWR model was performed. This study analyzed the different nuclide concentrations resulting from minor perturbations of the following parameters: assembly rod pitch, initial moderator boron concentration, fuel pin cladding thickness, moderator density, and fuel temperature. / text

The focus in this thesis is to improve knowledge of the BWR related uncertainties void, channel bow, and control rods. The presence of void determines the moderation of neutrons in BWRs. A high void fraction is less efficient in moderating neutrons than a low one. As a consequence, the ratio of thermal to fast neutrons is dependent on the surrounding void fraction. In this thesis, calculations with 2D/3D codes corroborate this dependence, the void correlation, to be linear and very robust to changes in different reactor parameters. The void fraction could be predicted from the ratio of simultaneously measured reaction rates from thermal and fast neutron detectors over the whole core with an uncertainty of ±1.5%. The only parameter found disturbing the void correlation significantly is channel bow. However, since channel bow is the only phenomenon found biasing the void correlation, it is found that the void prediction methodology can be used to indicate channel bow with a sensitivity of 4% per mm bow. Consequently, large channel bows could easily be detected. Increased knowledge of void fractions and channel bow could increase both safety and economy of nuclear power production. This thesis also investigates how 2D/3D codes used in production perform in calculating detailed impact of control rods on pin powers and their ability to perform control rod depletion calculations in the reflector region. It is found that the axial resolution used in 3D nodal codes has very large impact on pin power gradients, i.e., using a standard nodal size of ~15 cm can cause underestimations of 50% in pin power gradients, which could lead to fuel damages. In addition, two methods for determining the neutron flux in the control rod when it is withdrawn from the core are presented. Both methods can be used in a 3D nodal code to reproduce the neutron flux in the reflector region with an uncertainty of ±3%. / Felaktigt tryckt som Digital Comprehensive Summaries of Uppsala Dissertations from the Faculty of Science and Technology 715

The aim of this thesis was to derive a better understanding with regard to the effects of chloride on the general corrosion behaviour of low-alloy steels (LAS) in oxygenated high-temperature water (HTW) and to investigate the underlying mechanisms for crack initiation and propaga-tion due to chloride assisted environmentally assisted cracking (EAC). Therefore, systematic investigations on the effect of chloride on the EAC behaviour of LAS were performed to un-derstand and elucidate the underlying mechanisms. The overall thesis is divided into three parts focussing on the effect of chloride on: i) general corrosion, ii) crack initiation, and iii) crack growth of low-alloy steels in oxygenated high-temperature water. Studies on the effect of chloride on the general corrosion behaviour were performed by immer-sion tests that were evaluated using electrochemical monitoring techniques and different post-test investigation methods like SEM, ToF-SIMS, and others. From the performed investiga-tions it is concluded that the presence of small amounts of chloride in oxygenated HTW causes an incorporation of chloride into the oxide layer, a thinning of the oxide layer thickness, and pronounced pitting. The crack initiation susceptibility of LAS was investigated using CERT tests. These tests showed an increased number of crack initiation locations and a decrease of the elongation at fracture with increasing chloride concentrations. Crack growth rate tests clearly demonstrated that not the increase in the chloride concentration per se, but the conjoint occurrence of an active or dormant crack and increased chloride con-centration causes an increase in the observed crack growth rates. For practical applications of LAS in oxygenated HTW this means that short term transients seem to be not harmful regarding component integrity, but long term increased chloride con-centrations should by prohibited since they cause increased general corrosion of LAS. Taking crack initiation and crack growth into consideration, the conjoint occurrence of increased chlo-ride concentrations and mechanical straining at stress levels above the yield strength should be avoided.

In accident analysis regarding nuclear power plants, it is very common to use thermal hydraulic system codes, such as TRACE, developed by U.S. NRC. In the case of licensing a power plant, this is one of the necessities. TRACE is a relatively new thermal hydraulic system code and a lot of knowledge is needed to implement it in a correct way, especially in accident analysis, where it is a requirement that the rules and statements in Appendix-K, dealing with criteria for ECCS-models, are modelled. In this thesis an improved model of a Swedish Boiling Water Reactor within TRACE is realized and tested. Afterwards, once a working and representative model has been obtained, a sensitivity study in conducted in order to investigate the sensitivity of TRACE for a couple of thermal hydraulic parameters. The sensitivity study is focussing on the eect of the peak cladding temperature, as well as the coolability of the nuclear fuel in terms of quenching and quench-front velocities. It is found to be hard to say unilaterally what the eect of changing a certain number of parameters on the reactor behaviour is. As it turns out to be, although strongly related, the peak cladding temperatures and the quench phenomena can behave dierently

This study explores the behavior of a Boiling Water Reactor (BWR) during a turbine trip scenario initiated by the abrupt closure of the turbine stop valve. The RELAP5/Mod3.4 code is employed to make calculations using the Laguna Verde Nuclear Power Plant input model provided by Innovative Software Systems Company. The event sequences and initial boundary conditions are sourced from the Boiling Water Reactor Turbine Trip 2 Benchmark created by NEA. Results are subsequently compared against the benchmark values. In order to gauge the risk of a turbine trip event leading to elevated power, which could in turn cause Critical Heat Flux (CHF)-related issues in cladding temperature, a best-estimate case is developed. Our findings indicate that the closure of the turbine stop valve (TSV) resulted in a collapse of the void fraction within the reactor core. Although the core power doubled the initial level, the negative feedback mechanism effectively suppressed the power pulse. Throughout the transient phase, the maximum cladding temperature stayed below the CHF threshold, a fact attributable to the fuel's conductivity and the rapid progression of the transient. We further analyzed three hypothetical scenarios to test the computational boundaries of the plant model. The third scenario, which combines conditions from the first two, produced elevated outcomes (6500MW core power, 598K cladding temperature, and 7900kPa dome pressure) as expected. Notably, while the CHF limit remained unbreached in this scenario, literature reviews suggest potential core meltdown risks in subsequent stages of this calculation. Our sensitivity analyses determined that variations in the gamma heating coefficient or the maximum time step of the calculations have little to no impact on core power or peak cladding temperature. Conversely, we noted a significant reduction, approximately 35\%, in the power peak, underscoring the high sensitivity of the parameters to the initial triggering of the SCRAM mechanism. Our results also recommend rapid and early actuation of the BPV as a measure to dampen the pressure wave, consequently decreasing both the power peak and peak cladding temperatures. / Thesis / Master of Applied Science (MASc) / This research investigates the response of the Laguna Verde Boiling Water Reactor to a turbine trip event using the RELAP5/Mod3.4 thermal-hydraulic analysis code. From reactor safety perspective a best-estimate case is evaluated, as well as three additional hypothetical scenarios. Findings are compared with the Boiling Water Reactor Turbine Trip II Benchmark results. Additionally, sensitivity analyses focusing on plant parameters such as shutdown rod behavior, gamma heating coefficient, turbine stop valve, and steam bypass valve characteristics conducted to determine their impact on the results. Insights from these analyses aim to enhance safety protocols and refine best practices in boiling water reactor management.

In a nuclear reactor core there are fuel assemblies with different age (i.e. how long the assembly has been in the core) and burnup (i.e. how much energy that has been extracted from the assembly). The fresh assemblies have higher reactivity, which means they generate more thermal power, and therefore need a higher coolant flow rate than the older assemblies. In order to redistribute the coolant flow from the older assemblies to the fresher assemblies, the core can be divided into different throttling zones. The older assemblies are placed in the periphery of the core which has higher throttling, while the fresher assemblies are placed in the central parts of the core which has lower throttling. This type of throttling is done in the core inlet. However, there is also an opportunity to throttle the flow into each separate fuel assembly, which is done in the bottom nozzle of the assembly. This type of throttling is usually constant during the whole time the assembly is in the core and is specific for the assembly type, which means that it does not contribute to the redistribution of coolant flow from older to fresher assemblies. In this project, so called variable throttling was studied. This means that the throttling of each assembly is increased after the assembly has been in the reactor core for a specific time (e.g. one or two years) and the need of coolant flow hence has decreased. By doing this, while also decreasing the total coolant flow rate through the core, the amount of void (steam) in the core increases but enough coolant flow is supplied to the fresher assemblies due to the increased redistribution of the flow. An increased amount of void leads to a shift of the neutron spectrum to higher energies (“hardening” of the spectrum), which in turn leads to better breeding. Better breeding means that more fissile material, mainly Pu-239, is produced in the core during operation. A lower enrichment can therefore possibly be used, which would reduce the fuel costs. The results show that, by implementing variable throttling, the breeding is improved and the relevant safety requirements are also fulfilled. According to the calculations, the enrichment in the fresh fuel could possibly be lowered with up to 0.068 weight percent, which means that the fuel costs would be reduced with up to approximately 8 MSEK per fuel cycle.

The core of a BWR constitutes a highly complex radiational and chemical environment. Nuclear fission is utilized to generate power and as a consequence, large quantities of ionizing radiation are produced. Gamma and beta-particles along with neutrons have the sufficient ranges to escape the fuel rods and deposit energy in the reactor coolant. By doing so, radiolysis is initiated. The radiolysis species present in the coolant can interact chemically with the fuel rod cladding and cause corrosion. Different forms of corrosion are found on BWR fuel, with some effects being very local.  This thesis work outlines a method developed to investigate local corrosion phenomena, with a high spatial resolution. The purpose was to study Zircaloy corrosion and more particularly, to investigate an observed jump in corrosion thickness around the lower enrichment step on BWR fuel rod cladding. The corrosion thickness jump is a very local effect, hence the need for high spatial resolution. Monte-Carlo simulations were performed in a GEANT4-model of an inoperation reactor, to study the energy deposited from ionizing radiation in the coolant, around the low enrichment-step of the fuel rods. The energy dose data was then used as input to lwrChem to compute electrochemical potential and equilibrium concentrations of radiolysis species. These are the quantities needed to compute an equivalent corrosion rate on the cladding surface, although this was not performed within this project. The main focus was to successfully develop the two-program method using GEANT4 and lwrChem and this was achieved.  The project was performed Uppsala University with financial contribution from Vattenfall Nuclear Fuel AB and scientific contribution from Studsvik Nuclear AB.

In this master thesis an input-model of a Nordic BWR power plant has been developed in APROS. The plant model contains key systems and major thermohydraulic components of the steam cycle, including I&C systems (i.e. power, pressure, level and flow controls). The plant model is primarily designed for balance of plant studies at discrete power levels. The input-model of the power plant focuses especially on the steam cycle which is crucial for analysing water and steam behaviour and its influence on the reactor power. At the current stage, the model primarily handles steady-state conditions of full-power operation, which has been the design point. It has also been shown that reduced-power operation can be simulated with a reasonable trendline of pressure and temperature progression over facility components. / Inom ramen för examensarbete har en indatafil (modell) av en nordisk kokvattenreaktor, BWR, utvecklats i simuleringsverktyget APROS. Anläggningsmodellen är främst utformad för att simulera diskreta effektnivåer och innehåller viktiga system och termohydrauliska komponenter som ingår i ångcykeln, inklusive instrumenterings- och kontrollutrustning (dvs. effekt-, tryck-, nivå- och flödesreglering). Fokus har lagts särskilt på att få till en bra representation av ångcykeln, vilket är avgörande för analys av vatten- och ångbeteendet och dess påverkan på reaktoreffekten. Modellen kan främst användas för simulering av jämviktstillstånd vid full effektdrift och till en viss grad även reducerad effektdrift.

This work seeks to illustrate the potential benefits afforded by implementing aspects of fluid dynamics, especially the latest computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling approach, through numerical experimentation and the traditional discipline of physical experimentation to improve the calibration of the severe reactor accident analysis code, MELCOR, in one of several spent fuel pool (SFP) complete loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA) scenarios. While the scope of experimental work performed by Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) extends well beyond that which is reasonably addressed by our allotted resources and computational time in accordance with initial project allocations to complete the report, these simulated case trials produced a significant array of supplementary high-fidelity solutions and hydraulic flow-field data in support of SNL research objectives. Results contained herein show FLUENT CFD model representations of a 9x9 BWR fuel assembly in conditions corresponding to a complete loss-of-coolant accident scenario. In addition to the CFD model developments, a MATLAB based control-volume model was constructed to independently assess the 9x9 BWR fuel assembly under similar accident scenarios. The data produced from this work show that FLUENT CFD models are capable of resolving complex flow fields within a BWR fuel assembly in the realm of buoyancy-induced mass flow rates and that characteristic hydraulic parameters from such CFD simulations (or physical experiments) are reasonably employed in corresponding constitutive correlations for developing simplified numerical models of comparable solution accuracy. / text

In Siedewasserreaktoren ist ein Boreinspeisesystem diversitär wirkend zur Reaktorschnellabschaltung installiert. Dieses System garantiert, dass der Reaktor beim Versagen des Schnellabschaltesystems in einen unterkritischen Zustand überführt werden kann. Der aufgrund der Nachzerfallsleistung entweichende Dampf trägt jedoch ständig einen Teil des eingespeisten Bors in Form von Borsäure mit sich. Da dieser Prozess bisher nicht quantifiziert wurde, ist somit das Eintreten einer Rekrititkalität während der Transiente ohne weitere Untersuchungen nicht auszuschließen. In der vorliegenden Arbeit erfolgt die Erstellung einer fundierten Datenbasis zur Quantifizierung des Borverlusts an verschiedenen Betriebspunkten. Dazu stehen nach vorheriger Konstruktion und Inbetriebnahme zwei Versuchsanlagen zur Verfügung, ein Versuchsautoklav und der Siedewasserreaktor-Simulator BORAN. Das in diesen Versuchsanlagen enthaltene und als Kühlmedium genutzte entionisierte Wasser wird wie bei einem Siedewasserreaktor mit einer hochkonzentrierten Lösung der Borverbindung Dinatrium-Pentaborat-Dekahydrat versetzt. Für weiterführende Untersuchungen findet auch Borsäure Verwendung. Die Bestimmung des Borgehalts der Kondensate des entwichenen Dampfes erfolgt mit Massenspektrometrie mit induktiv gekoppeltem Plasma (ICP-MS). Die durch Variation von Borkonzentration, Temperatur, pH-Wert und Volumendampfgehalt erzeugten Messdaten fließen in einem Flüchtigkeitsmodell in Form einer empirischen Gleichung zusammen, welches in den Thermohydraulikcode ATHLET implementiert wird. Experimente am SWR-Simulator BORAN und entsprechende Rechnungen mit dem modifizierten Code ATHLET von Langzeit-Deborierungstransienten bei unterschiedlichen Randbedingungen bestätigen das Flüchtigkeitsmodell. Gleichzeitig erfolgt mittels dieser Experimente die Validierung des Modells im ATHLET mit hinreichender Genauigkeit. Mit den Ergebnissen aus Rechnungen und Experimenten wird das Boreinspeisesystem in seiner aktuellen Konfiguration bewertet und mit zukünftigen Konzepten verglichen. Schlussendlich erfolgt der Nachweis, dass die Funktionalität des Boreinspeisesystem aus dem Blickwinkel der durchgeführten Analysen, trotz der nachgewiesenen Borflüchtigkeit, die Forderungen der KTA 3103 erfüllt und aufgrund der nachgewiesenen Borflüchtigkeit binnen der ersten beiden Stunden der Transiente keine Rekritikalität verursacht wird. / In boiling water reactors a boron injection system as an alternative system is installed to guarantee that the reactor shut down in case of a total or partial ATWS accident. Because of the heat generated by the fission products after shutting down a part of the injected boron is evaporated as boron acid. This process is not characterized quantitatively yet. This is the reason that the incidence of recriticality during a transient cannot be excluded without further research. In the following studies a funded database quantifying the loss of boron is established. The volatility of the boron solution was measured by experiments in a small autoclave and in a boiling water reactor simulator called BORAN after construction. The deionised water used as coolant in the facilities will be enriched with boron by a high concentrated solution of Disodium-Pentaborate-Decahydrate. The measurement of the boron concentration in the condensates of the exhausted vapour is carried out by inductively-coupled-plasma mass-spectrometry (ICP-MS). For additional analysis boron acid is also used. The boron concentration in the vapour mainly depends on the temperature and void fraction of the two-phase-flow. This volatility model in form of an empiric equation is implemented in the thermo hydraulic ATHLET-code. Furthermore the reason of the volatility of the analysed solutions will be discussed within a chemical and physical background. Experiments at the BORAN facility and corresponding calculation with the modified ATHLET-code of long time deboration transients with different boundary conditions prove the volatility model. Thereby the code will be validated with sufficient accuracy. The modified code with an adapted Input-Dataset provides the possibility to calculate transients with the loss of boron. With the consideration of the volatility the demand of the KTA-rule 3103 on the Boron injection system is also grantable.