Effect of neutron beam properties on dose distributions in a water phantom for boron neutron capture therapy

Ishikawa, Akihisa; Tanaka, Hiroki*; Nakamura, Satoshi*; Kumada, Hiroaki*; Sakurai, Yoshinori*; Watanabe, Kenichi*; Yoshihashi, Sachiko*; Tanagami, Yuki*; Uritani, Akira*; Kiyanagi, Yoshiaki*

Journal of Radiation Research (Internet), 65(6), p.765 - 775, 2024/11

https://doi.org/10.1093/jrr/rrae076

R&D status of digital technology on inverse estimation of radioactive source distributions and related source countermeasures; Fast Digital Twin Tech. in Decommissioning Field: 3D-ADRES-Indoor FrontEnd

Machida, Masahiko; Yamada, Susumu; Kim, M.; Tanaka, Satoshi*; Tobita, Yasuhiro*; Iwata, Ayako*; Aoki, Yuto; Aoki, Kazuhisa; Yanagisawa, Kenichi*; Yamaguchi, Takashi; et al.

RIST News, (70), p.3 - 22, 2024/09

Inside the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (1F), there are many locations with high radiation levels due to contamination by radioactive materials that leaked from the reactor. These pose a significant obstacle to the smooth progress of decommissioning work. To help solve this issue, the Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA), under a subsidy from the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry's decommissioning and contaminated water management project, is conducting research and development on digital technologies to improve the radiation environment inside the decommissioning site. This project, titled "Development of Technology to Improve the Environment Inside Reactor Buildings (Enhancing Digital Technology for Environment and Source Distribution to Reduce Radiation Exposure)," began in April of FY 2023. In this project, the aim is to develop three interconnected systems: FrontEnd, Pro, and BackEnd. The FrontEnd system, based on the previously developed 3D-ADRES-Indoor (prototype) from FY 2021-2022, will be upgraded to a high-speed digital twin technology usable on-site. The Pro system will carry out detailed analysis in rooms such as the new office building at 1F, while the BackEnd system will serve as a database to centrally manage the collected and analyzed data. This report focuses on the FrontEnd system, which will be used on-site. After point cloud measurement, the system will quickly create a 3D mesh model, estimate the radiation source from dose rate measurements, and refine the position and intensity of the estimated source using recalculation techniques (re-observation instructions and re-estimation). The results of verification tests conducted on Unit 5 are also presented. Furthermore, the report briefly discusses the future research and development plans for this project.

Analysis of fuel assemblies inclination due to upper core support plate deflection for reactivity evaluation

Yoshimura, Kazuo; Doda, Norihiro; Igawa, Kenichi*; Uwaba, Tomoyuki; Tanaka, Masaaki; Nemoto, Toshiyuki*

Transactions of the 27th International Conference on Structural Mechanics in Reactor Technology (SMiRT 27) (Internet), 8 Pages, 2024/03

To investigate possibility of the insertion of the reactivity by the deflection of the upper core support plate, structural mechanics analyses of the domain consisting of the fuel assemblies and core support plates and evaluation of the reactivity due to the inclination of the fuel assemblies in EBR-II were carried out. As a result, it was indicated that the upper core support plate deflected downward larger at the low flowrate condition than that at the high flowrate condition and positive reactivity was inserted due to the inclination of the fuel assemblies at the low flowrate condition.

Development of virtual plant model for design rationalization of fast reactors by multi-level simulation system; Confirmation of functionality in application to U.S. experimental fast reactor EBR-II

Yoshimura, Kazuo; Doda, Norihiro; Nakamine, Yoshiaki*; Fujisaki, Tatsuya*; Igawa, Kenichi*; Iida, Masaki*; Tanaka, Masaaki

Dai-27-Kai Doryoku, Enerugi Gijutsu Shimpojiumu Koen Rombunshu (Internet), 5 Pages, 2023/09

In Japan Atomic Energy Agency, a virtual plant model of the sodium-cooled fast reactor plant composed in a computer is being developed to reduce the development cost, by replacing the experiments to the numerical simulations with coupled analyses of the physical phenomena accounting for the interaction between components under various plant conditions. Through the numerical analysis of the ULOHS test in the U.S. experimental fast reactor named EBR-II, applicability of the virtual plant model was confirmed in comparison with the measured data including the core inlet temperature and the reactor power.

Orientation mapping of YbSn single crystals based on Bragg-dip analysis using a delay-line superconducting sensor

Shishido, Hiroaki*; Vu, TheDang*; Aizawa, Kazuya; Kojima, Kenji M*; Koyama, Tomio*; Oikawa, Kenichi; Harada, Masahide; Oku, Takayuki; Soyama, Kazuhiko; Miyajima, Shigeyuki*; et al.

Journal of Applied Crystallography, 56(4), p.1108 - 1113, 2023/08

https://doi.org/10.1107/S1600576723005204

Development of a statistical evaluation method for core hot spot temperature in sodium-cooled fast reactor under natural circulation conditions

Doda, Norihiro; Igawa, Kenichi*; Iwasaki, Takashi*; Murakami, Satoshi*; Tanaka, Masaaki

Nuclear Engineering and Design, 410, p.112377_1 - 112377_15, 2023/08

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nucengdes.2023.112377

To enhance the safety of sodium-cooled fast reactors, the decay heat in the core must be removed by natural circulation even if the AC power supply to the forced circulation equipment is lost. Under natural circulation conditions, sodium flow is driven by buoyancy, and flow velocity and temperature distribution influence each other. Thus, it is difficult to evaluate the core hot spot temperature by deterministically considering the uncertainties affecting flow and heat. In this study, a statistical evaluation method is developed for the core hot spot temperature by using Monte Carlo sampling methods. The applicability of the core hotspot evaluation method was confirmed in three representative events during natural circulation decay heat removal operations in loop-type sodium-cooled fast reactors.

Improvement of reactivity model of core deformation in plant dynamics analysis code during unprotected loss of heat sink event in EBR-II

Yoshimura, Kazuo; Doda, Norihiro; Fujisaki, Tatsuya*; Igawa, Kenichi*; Tanaka, Masaaki; Yamano, Hidemasa

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

The benchmark analyses for the unprotected loss of heat sink (ULOHS) tests in the pool-type experimental SFR in the United States, EBR-II (BOP-301 and BOP-302R) have been conducted in order to validate the evaluation method of the reactivity feedback equipped in the plant dynamics analysis code named Super-COPD. In this study, 1D-CFD coupled analyses adding the core bowing reactivity model were conducted. Through the analysis, the applicability of the modified reactivity model was confirmed for the BOP-301 test. For the BOP-302R test, consideration of the core restraint system in the core and modeling the control rod driveline expansion reactivity was indicated.

Incommensurate helimagnetic structure of Ba(FeSc)O determined by single-crystal neutron diffraction

Tanaka, Seiya*; Kiyanagi, Ryoji; Ishikawa, Yoshihisa*; Amako, Yasushi*; Iiyama, Taku*; Futamura, Ryusuke*; Maruyama, Kenichi*; Utsumi, Shigenori*

Physical Review Materials (Internet), 7(1), p.014403_1 - 014403_11, 2023/01

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevMaterials.7.014403

Development of a design optimization framework for sodium-cooled fast reactors; Development of coupled analysis control function

Doda, Norihiro; Nakamine, Yoshiaki*; Igawa, Kenichi*; Iwasaki, Takashi*; Murakami, Satoshi*; Tanaka, Masaaki

Keisan Kogaku Koenkai Rombunshu (CD-ROM), 27, 6 Pages, 2022/06

As a part of the development of the "Advanced Reactor Knowledge- and AI-aided Design Integration Approach through the whole plant lifecycle (ARKADIA)" to automatically optimize the life cycle of innovative nuclear reactors including fast reactors, ARKADIA-design is being developed to support the optimization of fast reactor design in the conceptual stage. ARKADIA-Design consists of three systems (Virtual plant Life System (VLS), Evaluation assistance and Application System (EAS), and Knowledge Management System (KMS)). A design optimization framework controls the cooperation between the three systems through the interfaces in each system. This paper reports on the development status of the "VLS interface," which has a control function of coupling analysis codes in VLS.

High spatial resolution neutron transmission imaging using a superconducting two-dimensional detector

Shishido, Hiroaki*; Nishimura, Kazuma*; Vu, TheDang*; Aizawa, Kazuya; Kojima, Kenji M*; Koyama, Tomio*; Oikawa, Kenichi; Harada, Masahide; Oku, Takayuki; Soyama, Kazuhiko; et al.

IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity, 31(9), p.2400505_1 - 2400505_5, 2021/12

https://doi.org/10.1109/TASC.2021.3111396

In this study, we employed a superconducting detector, current-biased kinetic-inductance detector (CB-KID) for neutron imaging using a pulsed neutron source. We employed the delay-line method, and high spatial resolution imaging with only four reading channels was achieved. We also performed wavelength-resolved neutron imaging by the time-of-flight method. We obtained the neutron transmission images of a Gd-Al alloy sample, inside which single crystals of GdAl were grown, using the delay-line CB-KID. Single crystals were well imaged, in both shapes and distributions, throughout the Al-Gd alloy. We identified Gd nuclei via neutron transmissions that exhibited characteristic suppression above the neutron wavelength of 0.03 nm. In addition, the Gd resonance dip, a dip structure of the transmission caused by the nuclear reaction between an isotope and neutrons, was observed even when the number of events was summed over a limited area of 15 m 12 m. Gd selective imaging was performed using the resonance dip of Gd, and it showed clear Gd distribution even with a limited neutron wavelength range of 1 pm.