Investigation on multi-dimensional short-term behaviour through benchmark analysis of a large-volume sodium combustion experiment

Sonehara, Masateru; Okano, Yasushi; Uchibori, Akihiro; Oki, Hiroshi*

Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 62(5), p.403 - 414, 2025/05

https://doi.org/10.1080/00223131.2024.2441427

For sodium-cooled fast reactors, understanding sodium combustion behaviour is crucial for managing sodium leakage accidents. In this study, we perform benchmark analyses of the Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) T3 experiment using the multi-dimensional thermal hydraulic code AQUA-SF. Conducted in an enclosed space with a large vessel volume of 100 m and a sodium mass flow rate of 1 kg/s, the experiment highlighted the multi-dimensional effects of local temperature increase shortly after sodium injection. This study aims to extend the capabilities of AQUA-SF by focusing on the simulation of these multi-dimensional temperature variations, in particular the formation of high temperature regions at the bottom of the vessel. The proposed models include the temporary stopping of sodium droplet ignition and spray combustion of sodium splash on the floor. Furthermore, it has been shown that additional heat source near the floor is essential to enhance the reproduction of the high temperature region at the bottom. Therefore, case studies including sensitivity analyses of spray cone angle and prolonged combustion of droplets on the floor are conducted. This comprehensive approach provides valuable insights into the dynamics of sodium combustion and safety measures in sodium-cooled fast reactors.

Development of the versatile reactor analysis code system, MARBLE3

Yokoyama, Kenji; Hazama, Taira; Taninaka, Hiroshi; Oki, Shigeo

JAEA-Data/Code 2024-007, 41 Pages, 2024/10

JAEA-Data-Code-2024-007.pdf:1.1MB

The third version of the versatile reactor analysis code system, MARBLE3, has been developed. In the development of the former version of MARBLE, object-oriented scripting language Python (Python2) had been used and then the latest version of Python (Python3) was released. However, due to its backward incompatibility, MARBLE no longer worked with Python3. For this reason, MARBLE3 has been fully modified and maintained to work with Python3. In MARBLE3, newly developed analysis codes and newly proposed calculation methods were incorporated, and the user interface was extended and solvers were reimplemented for maintainability, extensibility, and flexibility. In MARBLE3, the three-dimensional hexagonal/triangular transport code MINISTRI Ver.7 (MINISTRI7) and the three-dimensional hexagonal/triangular diffusion code D-MINISTRI are available as the new analysis codes. These codes can be used in the neutronics analysis system SCHEME and the fast reactor burnup analysis system OPRHEUS, which are the subsystems of MARBLE. In addition, the user interface of CBG, a core analysis system embedded in MARBLE, was extended so that the diffusion and transport calculation solvers for the 2-dimensional RZ system of CBG can be used on SCHEME. On the other hand, MARBLE3 has extended the functionality of the burnup calculation solver so that it can use the numerical methods proposed in the papers on the improvement of the Chebyshev rational function approximation method and the minimax polynomial approximation method. From the viewpoint of maintainability, the point reactor kinetics solver POINTKINETICS, which was introduced in MARBLE2, has been newly reworked as the KINETICS solver in MARBLE3.

Model integration of the ex-vessel modules for the SFR safety analysis code SPECTRA

Aoyagi, Mitsuhiro; Makino, Toru*; Oki, Hiroshi*; Uchibori, Akihiro; Okano, Yasushi

Mechanical Engineering Journal (Internet), 11(2), p.23-00459_1 - 23-00459_12, 2024/04

https://doi.org/10.1299/mej.23-00459

Transient analyses of hydraulic head in the fault slip experiments in fracture zones of Shionohira and Kuruma Faults

Wakahama, Hiroshi*; Nojo, Haruka*; Aoki, Kazuhiro; Imai, Hirotaro; Guglielmi, Y.*; Cook, P.*; Soom, F.*

Oyo Chishitsu, 64(5), p.236 - 254, 2023/12

https://doi.org/10.5110/jjseg.64.236

Upon the Hamadori earthquake (Mw 6.7) of 11 April 2011, coseismic surface deformation of 14 km running NNW to SSE in southeast Fukushima Prefecture occurred and was newly named the Shionohira Fault. However, no surface deformation was observed along the Kuruma Fault which is a southern extension of the Shionohira Fault. Fault injection tests using SIMFIP method at the Shionohira site on the former active segment and the Minakamikita site on the latter inactive segment were conducted to evaluate the activity of the two faults. Based on hydraulic responses to water injection into the fault rupture zone in the monitoring boreholes at the two sites, hydraulic properties of the area across the fault zone were estimated using the GRF model (Barker, 1988). The results obtained on hydraulic conductivity, specific storage and flow dimension were consistent with those in the domestic and international literature. The hydraulic conductivity and specific storage were larger in Shionohira than in Minakamikita. The flow dimension of Shionohira was three-dimensional, while that of Minakamikita was found to be a two-dimensional fractional flow. In addition, it is understood that the volumetric expansion occurs in the former site in the triaxial direction and the latter in the uniaxial with the comparison between the uniaxial expansion coefficient calculated from the results of SIMFIP displacement measurements and the specific storage in the hydraulic analysis. The difference in the hydraulic parameters between the two sites corresponded to the difference in the spatial development of fractures considered to be the "water passway," indicating the possibility of a correlation between the parameters and the different possible causes for fault activity at the two sites.

Development of the ex-vessel modules for the integrated SFR safety analysis code SPECTRA

Aoyagi, Mitsuhiro; Makino, Toru*; Oki, Hiroshi*; Uchibori, Akihiro; Okano, Yasushi

Proceedings of 30th International Conference on Nuclear Engineering (ICONE30) (Internet), 7 Pages, 2023/05

Weyl-Kondo semimetal behavior in the chiral structure phase of CeRhSn

Iwasa, Kazuaki*; Suyama, Kazuya*; Kawamura, Seiko; Nakajima, Kenji; Raymond, S.*; Steffens, P.*; Yamada, Akira*; Matsuda, Tatsuma*; Aoki, Yuji*; Kawasaki, Ikuto; et al.

Physical Review Materials (Internet), 7(1), p.014201_1 - 014201_11, 2023/01

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevMaterials.7.014201

Radiation exposure to the lens of the eye for Japanese nuclear power plant workers

Yokoyama, Sumi*; Tatsuzaki, Hideo*; Tanimura, Yoshihiko; Yoshitomi, Hiroshi; Hirao, Shigekazu*; Aoki, Katsunori; Tachiki, Shuichi*; Ezaki, Iwao*; Hoshi, Katsuya; Tsujimura, Norio

Journal of Radiological Protection, 42(3), p.031504_1 - 031504_17, 2022/09

https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-6498/ac7913

In Japan, the radiation-dose limit for the lens of the eye was revised in April 2021. Consequently, for workers, the numerical values of the equivalent dose to the lens of the eye are equal to those of the effective dose. Radiation workers, radiation safety officers and licensees must comply with regulations related to radiation protection and optimize protection. The new guidelines on dose monitoring of the lens of the eye developed by the Japan Health Physics Society recommend for the dose to be estimated near the eye for accurate estimation, when the dose to the lens approaches or exceeds the management criteria. However, there is limited information regarding the non-uniform exposure of nuclear power plant workers. In this study, the dose equivalents of high-dose-rate workplaces and the personal doses of 88 workers were estimated at four Japanese commercial nuclear power plant sites (RWR: 3 units and BWR: 3 units) and the dose to the lens of the eye and the exposure situations of the workers were analyzed.

Development of the unified cross-section set ADJ2017R

Yokoyama, Kenji; Maruyama, Shuhei; Taninaka, Hiroshi; Oki, Shigeo

JAEA-Data/Code 2021-019, 115 Pages, 2022/03

JAEA-Data-Code-2021-019.pdf:6.21MB
JAEA-Data-Code-2021-019-appendix(CD-ROM).zip:435.94MB

In JAEA, several versions of unified cross-section set for fast reactors have been developed so far; we have developed a new unified cross-section set ADJ2017R, which is an improved version of the unified cross-section setADJ2017 for fast reactors. The unified cross-section set is used for reflecting information of C/E values (analysis / experiment values) obtained by integral experiment analyses in reactor core design via the cross-section adjustment methodology; the values are stored in the standard database for FBR core design. In the methodology, the cross-section set is adjusted by integrating the information such as uncertainty (covariance) of nuclear data, uncertainty of integral experiment / analysis, sensitivity of integral experiment with respect to nuclear data. ADJ2017R basically has the same performance as ADJ2017, but we conducted an additional investigation on ADJ2017 and revised the following two points. The first is to unify the evaluation method of the correlation coefficient of uncertainty caused by experiments (hereinafter referred to as the experimental correlation coefficient). Because it was found that the common uncertainty used in the evaluation of the experimental correlation coefficient was evaluated by two different methods, the experimental correlation coefficients were revised for all experimental data, and the evaluation method was unified. The second is the review of the integral experiment data used for the cross-section adjustment calculation. It was found that one of the experimental values of composition ratio after irradiation of the Am-243 sample has a problem in uncertainty evaluation because its experimental uncertainty is extremely small compared to the others. The cross-section adjustment calculation was, therefore, redone by excluding the experimental value. In the creation of ADJ2017, a total of 719 data sets were analyzed and evaluated, and eventually adopted 620 integral experimental data sets. In contrast, a total of 61

Layered structure in the crystalline adsorption layer and the leaching process of poly(vinyl alcohol) revealed by neutron reflectivity

Miyazaki, Tsukasa*; Miyata, Noboru*; Arima, Hiroshi*; Kira, Hiroshi*; Ouchi, Keiichi*; Kasai, Satoshi*; Tsumura, Yoshihiro*; Aoki, Hiroyuki

Langmuir, 37(32), p.9873 - 9882, 2021/08

https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.langmuir.1c01563

Core-level photoelectron spectroscopy study of UTe

Fujimori, Shinichi; Kawasaki, Ikuto; Takeda, Yukiharu; Yamagami, Hiroshi; Nakamura, Ai*; Homma, Yoshiya*; Aoki, Dai*

Journal of the Physical Society of Japan, 90(1), p.015002_1 - 015002_2, 2021/01

https://doi.org/10.7566/JPSJ.90.015002

The valence state of was studied by core-level photoelectron spectroscopy. The main peak position of the core-level spectrum of coincides with that of , which is anitinerant compound with a nearly configuration. However, the main peak of is broader than that of , and satellite structures are observed in the higher binding energy side of the main peak, which are characteristics of mixed-valence uranium compounds. These results suggest that the state in isin a mixed valence state with a dominant contribution from the itinerant configuration.