An Evaluation on Inelastic Thermal Neutron Scattering Cross-Section Data of Crystalline Graphite

Okita, Shoichiro; Abe, Yutaka*; Tasaki, Seiji*; Fukaya, Yuji

Radioisotopes, 73(3), p.233 - 240, 2024/11

https://doi.org/10.3769/radioisotopes.73.233

Development of a surrogate system of a plant dynamics simulation model and an abnormal situation identification system for nuclear power plants using deep neural networks

Seki, Akiyuki; Yoshikawa, Masanori; Nishinomiya, Ryota*; Okita, Shoichiro; Takaya, Shigeru; Yan, X.

Nuclear Technology, 210(6), p.1003 - 1014, 2024/06

https://doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2023.2273566

Two types of deep neural network (DNN) systems have been constructed with the intent to assist safety operation of a nuclear power plant. One is a surrogate system (SS) that can estimate physical quantities of a nuclear power plant in a computational time of several orders less than a physical simulation model. The other is an abnormal situation identification system (ASIS) that can estimate the state of the disturbance causing an anomaly from physical quantities of a nuclear power plant. Both systems are trained and tested using data obtained from the analytical code for incore and plant dynamics (ACCORD), which reproduces the steady and dynamic behavior of the actual high Temperature engineering test reactor (HTTR) under various scenarios. The DNN models are built by adjusting, the main hyperparameters. Through these procedures, these systems are shown able to perform with a high degree of accuracy.

Molecular dynamics analysis of reactor graphite for preparing thermal neutron scattering law

Okita, Shoichiro; Goto, Minoru

Proceedings of 12th International Conference on Nuclear Criticality Safety (ICNC2023) (Internet), 10 Pages, 2023/10

General-purpose nuclear data library JENDL-5 and to the next

Iwamoto, Osamu; Iwamoto, Nobuyuki; Kunieda, Satoshi; Minato, Futoshi; Nakayama, Shinsuke; Kimura, Atsushi; Nakamura, Shoji; Endo, Shunsuke; Nagaya, Yasunobu; Tada, Kenichi; et al.

EPJ Web of Conferences, 284, p.14001_1 - 14001_7, 2023/05

https://doi.org/10.1051/epjconf/202328414001

Research on improvement of HTGR core power-density, 4; Feasibility study for a reactor core

Okita, Shoichiro; Mizuta, Naoki; Takamatsu, Kuniyoshi; Goto, Minoru; Yoshida, Katsumi*; Nishimura, Yosuke*; Okamoto, Koji*

Proceedings of 30th International Conference on Nuclear Engineering (ICONE30) (Internet), 10 Pages, 2023/05

A Report on PHYSOR2022

Okita, Shoichiro

Robutsuri No Kenkyu (Internet), (75), 3 Pages, 2023/03

https://rpg.jaea.go.jp/else/rpd/annual_report/RPDNo75.html

This paper is a report on the International Conference on Physics of Reactors 2022 (PHYSOR2022), held in Pittsburgh, USA, from 15-19 May 2022.

Study on evaluation method of kernel migration of TRISO fuel for High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor

Fukaya, Yuji; Okita, Shoichiro; Sasaki, Koei; Ueta, Shohei; Goto, Minoru; Ohashi, Hirofumi; Yan, X.

Nuclear Engineering and Design, 399, p.112033_1 - 112033_9, 2022/12

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nucengdes.2022.112033

Kernel migration of TRi-structural ISOtropic (TRISO) fuel for High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor (HTGR) has been analyzed to investigate the potential dominating effects. Kernel migration is a major fuel failure mode and dominant to determine the lifetime of the fuel for High Temperature engineering Test Reactor (HTTR). However, this study shows that the result and reliability depend on the evaluation method. The evaluation method used in this study takes into account of actual distribution of Coated Fuel Particles (CFPs) and the resulting heterogeneous fuel temperature calculation with such distribution. The result shows that the Kernel Migration Rate (KMR) is predicted to be about 10% less compared with the most conservative evaluation.

Safety design philosophy of HTTR Heat Application Test Facility

Aoki, Takeshi; Shimizu, Atsushi; Iigaki, Kazuhiko; Okita, Shoichiro; Hasegawa, Takeshi; Mizuta, Naoki; Sato, Hiroyuki; Sakaba, Nariaki

JAEA-Technology 2022-011, 60 Pages, 2022/07

JAEA-Technology-2022-011.pdf:2.08MB

Japan Atomic Energy Agency is planning a High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor (HTTR) heat application test producing hydrogen with the HTTR which achieved the highest reactor outlet coolant temperature of 950C in the world to realize a massive, cost-effective and carbon-free hydrogen production technology utilizing a high temperature gas cooled reactor (HTGR). In the HTTR heat application test, it is required to establish its safety design for coupling a hydrogen production plant to HTGR through the licensing by the Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA). A draft of a safety design philosophy for the HTTR heat application test facility was considered taking into account postulated events due to the plant modification and coupling of the hydrogen production plant based on the HTTR safety design which was authorized through the safety review of the NRA against New Regulatory Requirements. The safety design philosophy was examined to apply proven conventional chemical plant standards to the hydrogen production plant for ensuring public safety against disasters caused by high pressure gases. This report presents a result of a consideration on safety design philosophies regarding the reasonability and condition to apply the High Pressure Gas Safety Act for the hydrogen production plant, safety classifications, seismic design classification, identification of important safety system.

Reactor physics experiment in a graphite moderation system for HTGR, 3

Fukaya, Yuji; Okita, Shoichiro; Kanda, Shun*; Goto, Masaki*; Nakajima, Kunihiro*; Sakon, Atsushi*; Sano, Tadafumi*; Hashimoto, Kengo*; Takahashi, Yoshiyuki*; Unesaki, Hironobu*

KURNS Progress Report 2021, P. 101, 2022/07

https://www.rri.kyoto-u.ac.jp/PUB/report/PR/ProgRep2021/ProgRep2021.html

The Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) started the Research and Development (R&D) to improve nuclear prediction techniques for High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactors (HTGRs) in 2018. The objectives are to intro-duce the generalized bias factor method to avoid full mock-up experiment for the first commercial HTGR and to improve neutron instrumentation system by virtue of the particular characteristics due to a graphite moderation system. For this end, we composed B7/4"G2/8"p8EU(3)+3/8"p38EU in the B-rack of Kyoto University Critical Assembly (KUCA) in 2021.

Computed tomography neutron detector system to observe power distribution in a core with long neutron flight path

Fukaya, Yuji; Okita, Shoichiro; Nakagawa, Shigeaki; Goto, Minoru; Ohashi, Hirofumi

Annals of Nuclear Energy, 168, p.108911_1 - 108911_7, 2022/04

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anucene.2021.108911

A power distribution monitoring system by using a moving detector for a core with a long neutron flight path has been proposed. High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor (HTGR) and Fast Reactor (FR) has a long neutron flight path and the neutrons reach to detector far from fuel assembly in the center of the core unlike Light Water Reactor (LWR). By using the feature, power distribution can be observed with a few detectors by moving the detector and computed tomography technology similar to X-ray Computed Tomography (CT). For a small-sized core, the power distribution can be evaluated only by an ex-core neutron detector. For a large-sized core with inner detectors, the power distribution can be observed with a small number of in-core detectors even if the deployment is limited due to material integrity conditions such as temperature environment. The feasibility is numerically confirmed by simulations of the HTGR core and its detector response. It is expected to observe the power distribution in the core of HTGR and FR, which is difficult continuously to deploy in-core detectors because of high temperature and/or high irradiation damage.