Thermal-hydraulic analyses of poisoned cold moderator vessel, 1; Study on Poison Plate Layout

Sato, Hiroshi; Aso, Tomokazu ; Kogawa, Hiroyuki  ; Teshigawara, Makoto   ; Hino, Ryutaro

The Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute is constructing a mega-watt class spallation neutron source in cooperation with the High Energy Accelerator Research Organization. A cold moderator using liquid hydrogen is one of the key components in the system, which directly affects the neutronic performance both in intensity and pulse time structure. Since a hydrogen temperature rise in the moderator vessel affects the neutronic performance, it is necessary to suppress the recirculation and stagnant regions which would cause hot spots. A cold moderator with a poison plate (poisoned decoupled moderator) has a high possibility to generate the stagnant region on and near the poison plate. Thermal-hydraulic analyses were carried out with proposed inner structure of the poisoned cold moderator. The stagnant and recirculation regions could be reduced by making a gap between the poison plate end and the vessel bottom surface, and the local temperature rise also could be kept under the required design value.