The OECD/NEA Working Group on the Analysis and Management of Accidents (WGAMA); Advances in codes and analyses to support safety demonstration of nuclear technology innovations

Nakamura, Hideo; Bentaib, A.*; Herranz, L. E.*; Ruyer, P.*; Mascari, F.*; Jacquemain, D.*; Adorni, M.*

Proceedings of International Conference on Topical Issues in Nuclear Installation Safety; Strengthening Safety of Evolutionary and Innovative Reactor Designs (TIC 2022) (Internet), 10 Pages, 2022/10

Boundary condition free homogenization and evaluation of its performance in fast reactor core analysis

Maruyama, Shuhei

Proceedings of International Conference on Physics of Reactors 2022 (PHYSOR 2022) (Internet), 10 Pages, 2022/05

This paper proposes a new homogenization method, "Boundary Condition Free Homogenization (BCFH)". The traditional homogenization method separates the core calculation and the cell (assembly) calculation by assuming a specific boundary condition or a peripheral region in the cell calculation. Nevertheless, there are ambiguities and approximation in these assumptions, and they can also cause a decline in accuracy. BCFH aims to avoid these problems and improve the accuracy in the cell calculation such as homogenization. We imposed the conditions that the physical quantities in the cell related to the reaction rate preservation is preserved for any incoming partial current, during the homogenization. That is, the response matrices of cell average (or total) flux and outgoing partial current, to be the same form between heterogeneous and homogeneous system. As a result, homogenized parameters, such as cross-sections, superhomgenization factors, and discontinuity factors, are no longer dependent on a specific boundary condition. The new homogenized parameters obtained in this way are extended from the conventional vector form to the matrix form in BCFH. To investigate the performance of BCFH, numerical tests are done for the simplified models which originates in 750MW-class sodium-cooled fast reactor with MOX fuel core in Japan. It is found that BCFH is particularly effective in evaluating control rod reactivity worth and reaction rate distribution, compared to the traditional method. We conclude that the BCFH can be a promising homogenization concept for core neutronic analysis.

Quantifying the porosity of crystalline rocks by in situ and laboratory injection methods

Mri, A.*; Mazurek, M.*; Ota, Kunio; Siitari-Kauppi, M.*; Eichinger, F.*; Leuenberger, M.*

Minerals (Internet), 11(10), p.1072_1 - 1072_17, 2021/10

https://doi.org/10.3390/min11101072

Measurement of the CKM matrix element from at Belle

Waheed, E.*; Tanida, Kiyoshi; Belle Collaboration*; 187 of others*

Physical Review D, 100(5), p.052007_1 - 052007_32, 2019/09

https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevD.100.052007

3D X Ray micro-tomography as a tool to formulate metakaolin-based geopolymer-oil emulsions

Lambertin, D.*; Davy, C. A.*; Hauss, G.*; Planel, B.*; Marchand, B.*; Cantarel, V.

Proceedings of 1st International Conference on Innovation in Low-Carbon Cement and Concrete Technology (ILCCC 2019) (USB Flash Drive), 4 Pages, 2019/06

Composite materials made of geopolymer (GP) cement and organic liquids are useful to synthetize porosity-controlled media, for the management of radioactive organic liquid waste, or as phase change materials (PCM). Indeed, GP cements are able to integrate huge amounts of organic oils by direct emulsion in the fresh paste. The emulsion (GEOIL) remains stable during GP hardening. In this contribution, by using 3D X Ray micro Computed Tomography (micro CT) with a voxel size of 1 micron, we investigate the effect of formulation parameters (oil proportion, Si/Al molar ratio, surfactant) on the 3D oil droplet structure of GEOIL pastes. Samples are emulsified in the fresh state, and imaged in the hardened state. Porosity, oil droplet size distribution and mean distance between droplets are all determined quantitatively. It is observed that the presence of surfactant provides significantly smaller oil droplets. The increase in Si/Al ratio also decreases the oil droplet sizes, but to a lesser extent.

Effects of fine-scale surface alterations on tracer retention in a fractured crystalline rock from the Grimsel Test Site

Tachi, Yukio; Ito, Tsuyoshi*; Akagi, Yosuke*; Sato, Hisao*; Martin, A. J.*

Water Resources Research, 54(11), p.9287 - 9305, 2018/11

https://doi.org/10.1029/2018WR023145

Effects of fine-scale surface alterations on radionuclide migration in fractured crystalline rocks were investigated by a comprehensive approach coupling a series of laboratory tests, microscopic observations and modelling, using a single fractured granodiorite sample from the Grimsel Test Site, Switzerland. Laboratory tests including through-diffusion, batch sorption and flow-through tests using five tracers indicated that tracer retention was consistently in the sequence of HDO, Se, Cs, Ni, Eu, and as well as showing the existence of a diffusion-resistance layer near the fracture surface, cation excess and anion exclusion effects for diffusion. Microscale heterogeneities in structural properties around the fracture were clarified quantitatively by coupling X-ray CT and EPMA. A three layer model including weathered vermiculite, foliated mica and undisturbed matrix layers, and their properties such as porosity, sorption and diffusion parameters, could provide a reasonable interpretation for breakthrough curves and concentration distributions near fracture surface of all tracers, measured in flow-through tests.

Development of glass melting process for LLW at the research project commissioned by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry

Fukui, Toshiki*; Maki, Takashi*; Miura, Nobuyuki; Tsukada, Takeshi*

Genshiryoku Bakkuendo Kenkyu (CD-ROM), 23(2), p.169 - 173, 2016/12

https://nuce.aesj.or.jp/jnuce/vol23/Jnuce-Vol23-2-p169-174.pdf

The basic research programs for the next generation vitrification technology, which are commissioned project from Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan, have been implemented from 2014 until 2018 for developing the advanced vitrification technology of low level wastes and high level liquid wastes.

Comparative modeling of an in situ diffusion experiment in granite at the Grimsel Test Site

Soler, J. M.*; Landa, J.*; Havlov, V.*; Tachi, Yukio; Ebina, Takanori*; Sardini, P.*; Siitari-Kauppi, M.*; Eikenberg, J.*; Martin, A. J.*

Journal of Contaminant Hydrology, 179, p.89 - 101, 2015/08

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jconhyd.2015.06.002

Matrix diffusion is a key process for radionuclide retention in crystalline rocks. An in-situ diffusion experiment in granite matrix was performed at the Grimsel Test Site (Switzerland). Several tracers (HTO, Na, Cs) were circulated through a borehole and the decrease in tracer concentrations was monitored for 2.5 years. Then, the borehole section was overcored and the tracer profiles in the rock were analyzed. Transport distances in the rock were 20 cm for HTO, 10 cm for Na and 1 cm for Cs. The dataset was analyzed with diffusion-sorption models by different teams using different codes, with the goal of obtaining effective diffusivities (De) and rock capacity factors. There was a rather good agreement between the values from different teams, implied that De and capacity factors in the borehole damaged zone are larger than those in the bulk rock. However, HTO seems to display large discrepancies between measured and modeled results.

Internally Cu-stabilized RHQT NbAl superconductors with Ta matrix

Takeuchi, Takao*; Tagawa, Kohei*; Noda, Tetsuji*; Banno, Nobuya*; Iijima, Yasuo*; Kikuchi, Akihiro*; Kitaguchi, Hitoshi*; Kosuge, Michio*; Tsuchiya, Kiyosumi*; Koizumi, Norikiyo; et al.

IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity, 16(2), p.1257 - 1260, 2006/06

https://doi.org/10.1109/TASC.2006.870804

Next generation nuclear fusion magnets would require a high-current conductor in fields more than 16 T. A CIC conductor of the rapid RHQT processed NbAl may be a promising candidate. Good deformability of intermediately-formed bcc supersaturated-solid solution indeed allowed fabricating such a CIC conductor, which would be subsequently transformation annealed. Ag has been internally included as a basic constituent of a round strand so far, because Ag is almost non-reactive with Nb matrix during the RHQ. However, both of Ag and Nb are not suitable nuclei from the viewpoint of radioactivity when irradiated with neutrons. Recently, we have succeeded in replacing the Nb matrix with Ta that has the advantage of shorter half-life of radioactivity. In the present study, an attempt has been made to replace the Ag internal stabilizer with Cu, in the aim of further reducing radioactivity, based on anticipation that Ta would be less reactive with Cu than Nb did.

Estimation of covariance matrices for nuclear data of , and

Nakagawa, Tsuneo

Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 42(11), p.984 - 993, 2005/11

https://doi.org/10.3327/jnst.42.984

no abstracts in English