Influence of interstitial carbon on bulk texture evolution of carbide-free high-entropy alloys during cold rolling using neutron diffraction

Fang, W.*; Liu, C.*; Zhang, J.*; Xu, P. G.; Peng, T.*; Liu, B.*; Morooka, Satoshi; Yin, F.*

Scripta Materialia, p.116046_1 - 116046_6, 2024/05

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scriptamat.2024.116046

Development of experimental core configurations to clarify k variations by nonuniform core configurations

Gunji, Satoshi; Araki, Shohei; Suyama, Kenya

Nuclear Science and Engineering, 197(8), p.2017 - 2029, 2023/08

https://doi.org/10.1080/00295639.2022.2164151

The fuel debris generated by the accident at the Tokyo Electric Power Company's Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant is expected to have not only heterogeneous but also nonuniform compositions. Similarly, damaged fuel assemblies remaining in the reactor vessels also have nonuniform configurations due to some missing fuel rods. This non-uniformity may cause changing neutron multiplication factors. The effect of non-uniformity on the neutron multiplication factor is clarified by computations, and the possibility of experimentally validating the computations used for criticality management is being investigated. For this purpose, in this study the criticality effects of several core configurations of a new critical assembly, STACY, of the Japan Atomic Energy Agency with nonuniform arrangements of uranium oxide fuel rods, concrete rods, and stainless-steel rods were studied to confirm benchmarking potential. The difference in these arrangements changed the neutron multiplication factor by more than 1 $. We confirmed that changes in local neutron moderation conditions and the clustering of specific components caused this effect. In addition, the feasibility of benchmark experimental cores with nonuniform arrangements is evaluated. If benchmarking of such experiments could be realized, it would help to validate calculation codes and to develop criticality management methods by machine learning.

Verification of fuel assembly bowing analysis model for core deformation reactivity evaluation

Doda, Norihiro; Uwaba, Tomoyuki; Ohgama, Kazuya; Yoshimura, Kazuo; Nemoto, Toshiyuki*; Tanaka, Masaaki; Yamano, Hidemasa

Nihon Kikai Gakkai Kanto Shibu Dai-29-Ki Sokai, Koenkai Koen Rombunshu (Internet), 5 Pages, 2023/03

An evaluation method for reactivity feedback due to core deformation during reactor power increase in sodium-cooled fast reactors is being developed for realistic core design evaluation. In this evaluation method, fuel assembly bowing was modeled with a beam element of the finite element method, and the assembly's pad contact between adjacent assemblies was modeled with a dedicated element which could consider the wrapper tube cross-sectional distortion and the pad stiffness depending on pad contact conditions. This fuel assembly bowing analysis model was verified for thermal bowing of a single assembly and assembly pad contact between adjacent assemblies in a core as past benchmark problems. The calculation results by this model showed good agreement with those of reference solutions of theoretical solutions or results by participating institutions in the benchmark. This study confirmed that the analysis model was able to calculate thermal assembly bowing appropriately.

Experimental study on velocity distribution in the subchannels of a fuel pin bundle with wrapping wire; Evaluation of the characteristics of flow field in 3-pin bundle

Hiyama, Tomoyuki; Aizawa, Kosuke; Nishimura, Masahiro; Kurihara, Akikazu

JAEA-Research 2021-009, 29 Pages, 2021/11

JAEA-Research-2021-009.pdf:2.25MB

In sodium-cooled fast reactors, high burnup of fuel is required for practical use. It is important to predict and evaluate the flow behavior in a fuel assembly because there is a concern that the heat removal capacity of the fuel assembly with high burnup will be locally reduced due to swirling and thermal deformation of the fuel rods. In this study, flow field measurement tests were conducted using a 3-pin bundle system test specimen for the purpose of elucidating the phenomenon and constructing a verification database for thermal hydraulics analysis code. The viewpoints of the experiment for elucidating the phenomenon are as follows; (1) Overall flow behavior in the subchannel including near the wrapping wire, (2) Relationship between Reynolds number including laminar flow region and flow field, and (3) Evaluation of the effect of the presence or absence of wrapping wire on the flow field. As a result, detailed flow field data in the subchannel was obtained by PIV measurement. It was found that when the wrapping wire crossed the subchannel, the flow occurred toward adjacent subchannel and the flow occurred that follows the winding direction of the wrapping wire. It was confirmed that the tendency of the flow velocity distribution of the Reynolds number in the laminar flow region is significantly different from that of the transition region and the turbulent region under the condition. The test was conducted using a same 3-pin bundle system without the wrapping wire, and it was confirmed that mixing by the wrapping wire occurred even in the laminar flow region.

Development of microstructural analysis and evaluation techniques of steel materials using RIKEN compact accelerator-driven neutron source (RANS)

Xu, P. G.; Takamura, Masato*; Iwamoto, Chihiro*; Hakoyama, Tomoyuki*; Otake, Yoshie*; Suzuki, Hiroshi

Isotope News, (774), p.7 - 10, 2021/04

https://www.jrias.or.jp/books/cat3/2021/774.html

no abstracts in English

Validation study of finite element thermal-hydraulics analysis code SPIRAL to a large-scale wire-wrapped fuel assembly at low flow rate condition

Yoshikawa, Ryuji; Imai, Yasutomo*; Kikuchi, Norihiro; Tanaka, Masaaki; Gerschenfeld, A.*

Proceedings of Joint International Conference on Supercomputing in Nuclear Applications + Monte Carlo 2020 (SNA + MC 2020), p.73 - 80, 2020/10

A finite element thermal-hydraulics simulation code SPIRAL has been developed in Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) to analyze the detailed thermal-hydraulics phenomena in a fuel assembly (FA) of Sodium-cooled Fast Reactors (SFRs). The numerical simulation of a large-scale sodium test for 91-pin bundle (GR91) at low flow rate condition was performed for the validation of SPIRAL with the hybrid k-e turbulence model to take into account the low Re number effect near the wall in the flow and temperature fields. Through the numerical simulation, specific velocity distribution affected by the buoyancy force was shown on the top of the heated region and the temperature distribution predicted by SPIRAL agreed with that measured in the experiment and the applicability of the SPIRAL to thermal-hydraulic evaluation of large-scale fuel assembly at low flow rate condition was indicated.

Microstructural features and ductile-brittle transition behavior in hot-rolled lean duplex stainless steels

Takahashi, Osamu*; Shibui, Yohei*; Xu, P. G.; Harjo, S.; Suzuki, Tetsuya*; Tomota, Yo*

Quantum Beam Science (Internet), 4(1), p.16_1 - 16_15, 2020/03

https://doi.org/10.3390/qubs4010016

Reactor physics experiment in graphite moderation system for HTGR, 1

Fukaya, Yuji; Nakagawa, Shigeaki; Goto, Minoru; Ishitsuka, Etsuo; Kawakami, Satoru; Uesaka, Takahiro; Morita, Keisuke; Sano, Tadafumi*

KURNS Progress Report 2018, P. 148, 2019/08

https://www.rri.kyoto-u.ac.jp/PUB/report/PR/ProgRep2018/ProgRep2018.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). The objectives are to introduce generalized bias factor method to avoid full mock-up experiment for the first commercial HTGR and to introduce reactor noise analysis to High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor (HTTR) experiment. To achieve the objectives, the reactor core of graphite moderation system named B7/4"G2/8"p8EUNU+3/8"p38EU(1) was newly composed in the B-rack of Kyoto University Critical Assembly (KUCA). The core plays a role of the reference core of the bias factor method, and the reactor noise was measured to develop the noise analysis scheme. In addition, training of operator of HTTR was also performed during the experiments.

Comparison of the measurements of austenite volume fraction by various methods for Mn-Si-C steel

Tomota, Yo*; Sekido, Nobuaki*; Xu, P. G.; Kawasaki, Takuro; Harjo, S.; Tanaka, Masahiko*; Shinohara, Takenao; Su, Y. H.; Taniyama, Akira*

Tetsu To Hagane, 103(10), p.570 - 578, 2017/10

https://doi.org/10.2355/tetsutohagane.TETSU-2017-045

Prospect for application of compact accelerator-based neutron source to neutron engineering diffraction

Ikeda, Yoshimasa*; Taketani, Atsushi*; Takamura, Masato*; Sunaga, Hideyuki*; Kumagai, Masayoshi*; Oba, Yojiro*; Otake, Yoshie*; Suzuki, Hiroshi

Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research A, 833, p.61 - 67, 2016/10

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nima.2016.06.127

A compact accelerator-based neutron source has been lately discussed on engineering applications such as transmission imaging and small angle scattering as well as reflectometry. However, nobody considers using it for neutron diffraction experiment because of its low neutron flux. In this study, therefore, the neutron diffraction experiments are carried out using Riken Accelerator-driven Compact Neutron Source (RANS), to clarify the capability of the compact neutron source for neutron engineering diffraction. The diffraction pattern from a ferritic steel was successfully measured by suitable arrangement of the optical system to reduce the background noise, and it was confirmed that the recognizable diffraction pattern can be measured by the large sampling volume with 10 mm in cubic for an acceptable measurement time, i.e. 10 minutes. The minimum resolution of the 110 reflection for RANS is approximately 2.5 % at 8 s of the proton pulse width, which is insufficient to perform the strain measurement by neutron diffraction. The moderation time width at the wavelength corresponding to the 110 reflection is estimated to be approximately 30 s, which is the most dominant factor to determine the resolution. Therefore, refinements of the moderator system to decrease the moderation time are important to improve the resolution of the diffraction experiment using the compact neutron source. In contrast, the texture evolution due to plastic deformation was successfully observed by measuring a change in the diffraction peak intensity by RANS. Furthermore, the volume fraction of the austenite phase was also successfully evaluated by fitting the diffraction pattern using a Rietveld code. Consequently, RANS was proved to be capable for neutron engineering diffraction aiming for the easy access measurement of the texture and the amount of retained austenite.