IPEN/MB-01 reactor experiments with nickel reflectors

Abstract

In the validation and verification processes of calculation methodologies and associated nuclear data libraries, the existence of experiments that can be considered benchmarks is of fundamental importance. For this purpose, a set of experiments with heavy material nuclear reflector was performed in the IPEN/MB-01 reactor using nickel plates properly inserted in the west face of the reactor core. A total of 32 plates around 3 mm thick were used in the experiment. The axial width and length were sufficient to cover the entire active reactor core. For each plate placement step, reactivity measurements were made due to their insertion in the core; as well as of the critical position of the equally removed BC1 and BC2 control rods. It could be observed that the increase of neutron absorption and consequent decrease of neutron moderation dominated the whole physics of the problem when few plates of reflective material were inserted (about 3 plates). Thereafter, neutron reflection became important overcoming neutron absorption; the reactivity increased until it surpassed the situation without plate (excess reactivity zero) obtaining an increase (net gain) of reactivity with the 32 plates inserted (about 295 pcm). Therefore, it was observed that the reflected nucleus became more reactive than the nucleus without reflective material. The theoretical analysis using MCNP-5 and ENDF/B-VII.0 nuclear data library showed the physical aspects of neutron absorption and reflection in the heavy reflector considered; however, it presented a discrepancy when fast neutron reflection dominates the physical phenomenon of neutron transport. In order to verify the impact of other models of thermal scattering of hydrogen in water for the computational simulations of the experiments, three models were considered, besides the one used by the ENDF/B-VII.0 library: ENDF/B-VII.0 scattering law; new evaluation of the S (alpha, beta) for hydrogen bound in water performed in Bariloche Atomic Center, Argentina; and the calculated with new released evaluations for (235)U, (238)U and (16)O.