2007 International RERTR Meeting
Abstracts and Available Papers Presented at the Meeting
Reactor Core Design and Modeling of the MIT Research Reactor for Conversion to LEU
Thomas H. Newton, Jr.
Nuclear Reactor Laboratory,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology,
138 Albany St.
Cambridge, MA, USA 02139
Arne P. Olson, and John
A. Stillman
RERTR Program
Argonne National Laboratory
Argonne, IL USA 60439
ABSTRACT
Feasibility design studies for conversion of the MIT Research Reactor (MITR) to LEU are described. Because the reactor fuel has a rhombic cross section, a special input processor was created in order to model the reactor in great detail with the REBUS-PC diffusion theory code, in 3D (triangular-z) geometry. Comparisons are made of fuel assembly power distributions and control blade worth vs. axial position, between REBUS-PC results and Monte Carlo predictions from the MCNP code. Results for the original HEU core at zero burnup are also compared with measurement. These two analysis methods showed remarkable agreement. Ongoing fuel cycle studies are summarized. A status report will be given as to results thus far that affect key design decisions. Future work plans and schedules to achieve completion of the conversion are presented.
Full paper in PDF format
- Reactor Core
Design and Modeling of the MIT Research Reactor for
Conversion to LEU, T. H. Newton et al.
[PDF, 279KB, 10 pages]
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Contact:
Dr. Jordi Roglans-Ribas
Technical Director, RERTR Department
Nuclear Engineering Division – 362
Argonne National Laboratory
9700 South Cass Avenue
Argonne, IL 60439
Fax: +1 630-252-5161