Speaker
Description
Alexandre P.S. Souza1,2, Carlos G.S. Silva1,2, Frederico A. Genezini1,2
1Reator Multipropósito Brasileiro (RMB), Comissão Nacional de Energia Nuclear (CNEN),
São Paulo – Brazil.
2Instituto de Pesquisas Energéticas e Nucleares (IPEN), Comissão Nacional de Energia Nuclear (CNEN), São Paulo – Brazil.
alexandre.s-fpatria@ipen.br
In this work, we present the first high-fidelity Monte Carlo model of the Brazilian IEA-R1 nuclear reactor, located at IPEN/CNEN in São Paulo, Brazil. The MCNP 6.3 code was employed to model the reactor core and its components, enabling sensitivity analyses of the reactivity and the effective multiplication factor. The modeling was based on all available documentation for the IEA-R1 reactor and incorporated the exact dimensions of all tank components, including reflectors, beam tubes, and irradiation devices. In addition, it included a complete description of the reactor core fuel elements, such as their material composition and burnup data for the fuel, reflectors and poison. Additionally, the simulation results were benchmarked against experimental measurements performed at strategic locations inside the reactor core at irradiation positions and along the reactor beam holes, enabling the validation of the developed computational model. As a result of this high-fidelity stochastic representation of the IEA-R1 reactor, our neutron research group will be able to reliably obtain a neutron distribution that allows the design of the new high-resolution powder diffractometer at IPEN-CNEN, named BÎAR (Brazilian Instrument of Adjustable Resolution). The name BÎAR, meaning "little by little" in Old Tupi (the language spoken by one of the indigenous peoples who lived by parts of the Brazilian coast), reflects the instrument's Brazilian identity. The simulations will also support the upgrade of the current operating neutron imaging instrument, and also the design of a new neutron beamline dedicated to research and testing of neutron detectors. Furthermore, all knowledge acquired through this work will be applied to the design of the instruments for the Brazilian Center for Neutron Research (BCNR), a facility of the future Brazilian Multipurpose Reactor (RMB), currently under construction in the city of Iperó, São Paulo, Brazil.
Key Words
Monte Carlo Simulations, Powder Neutron Diffractometer, Reactor Core Simulation