Optimization of the cold moderator for the new pulsed reactor NEPTUN

•The possibility of using mesitylene as a cold moderator in the new research reactor NEPTUN was examined.•To achieve a high cold neutron flux and longest working time, mesitylene was examined in two forms (bulk form, small pellets).•Two designs for the cold moderator chambers were tested.•A comparis...

Ausführliche Beschreibung

Gespeichert in:
Bibliographische Detailangaben
Veröffentlicht in:Nuclear engineering and design 2023-04, Vol.404, p.112192, Article 112192
Hauptverfasser: Hassan, A.A., Bulavin, M.V., Afanasyev, V.V.
Format: Artikel
Sprache:eng
Schlagworte:
Online-Zugang:Volltext
Tags: Tag hinzufügen
Keine Tags, Fügen Sie den ersten Tag hinzu!
Beschreibung
Zusammenfassung:•The possibility of using mesitylene as a cold moderator in the new research reactor NEPTUN was examined.•To achieve a high cold neutron flux and longest working time, mesitylene was examined in two forms (bulk form, small pellets).•Two designs for the cold moderator chambers were tested.•A comparison between five different materials at varying temperatures to be used as a cold moderator was done.•The technology currently used in the IBR-2 reactor is not suitable for use in the new NEPTUN reactor. The Frank Laboratory of Neutron Physics (FLNP) at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR) has begun designing a new research reactor, NEPTUN, to replace the IBR-2M (pulsed fast reactor - the name in russian) reactor, which is expected to be out of service between 2032 and 2036. The IBR-2 reactor is a third-generation neutron source that started working in 1982 at Dubna, Russian Federation. The IBR-2M reactor was successfully modernized in 2012. The NEPTUN reactor is a fourth-generation neutron source that will use Np-237 as a nuclear fuel for the first time. It was studied if mesitylene (1,3,5-trimethylbenzene), which is now being utilized effectively in the reactor IBR-2M, might be used as a cold moderator in the new research reactor NEPTUN with an average thermal power of 15 MWt. A study of five materials used as a cold neutron moderator at various temperatures was also conducted. Longer working times for cold moderator material were another goal of optimization. According to the findings, mesitylene at a temperature of 20 K should be used as a cold moderator to get the greatest neutron flux at a wavelength of 3 ≤ λ ≤ 10 Å. Additionally, ortho hydrogen at 20 K could increases the cold neutron flux with wavelengths, λ ˃ 10 Å.
ISSN:0029-5493
1872-759X
DOI:10.1016/j.nucengdes.2023.112192