IPAC2011 - Classification: 08 Applications of Accelerators, Technology Transfer and Industrial Relations / U03 Transmutation and Power Generation

Paper

Title

Page

Accelerator-driven Subcritical Molten-salt-fueled Reactors

2868

R.P. Johnson
Muons, Inc, Batavia, USA
C. Bowman
ADNA, Los Alamos, New Mexico, USA

Reactors built using solid fissile materials sealed in fuel rods have an inherent safety problem in that volatile radioactive materials in the rods are accumulated and can be released in dangerous amounts. Accelerator parameters for subcritical reactors that have been considered in recent studies have primarily been based on using solid nuclear fuel much like that used in all operating critical reactors as well as the thorium-burning accelerator-driven energy amplifier proposed by Rubbia et al. An attractive alternative reactor design that used molten salts was experimentally studied at ORNL in the 1960s, where a critical molten salt reactor was successfully operated using enriched U235 or U233 tetrafluoride fuels. These experiments give confidence that an accelerator-driven subcritical molten salt reactor will work as well or better than conventional reactors, having better efficiency due to their higher operating temperature, having the inherent safety of subcritical operation, and having constant purging of volatile radioactive elements to eliminate their accumulation and potential accidental release in dangerous amounts.

Slides THOAB01 [5.723 MB]

THPS094

New Approaches in High Power RFQ Technology

3654

A. Bechtold, J.M. Maus, G. Ritter
NTG Neue Technologien GmbH & Co KG, Gelnhausen, Germany

There is a clear tendency for the utilization of continuous wave c.w. high power RFQs in a huge variety of applications like nuclear waste transmutation or material research. They can serve as injectors for the production of secondary particles like neutrons or rare isotopes and can be applied for post acceleration of the latter ones. These RF-structures have to withstand an enormous amount of RF-power dissipated on the surfaces (up to several 10s kW per meter) and the associated thermal load. NTG Company gained lots of experience especially in the field of 4-rod c.w. RFQ design. Most recent developments to handle such high RF-power dissipation shall be reported.

THPS095

Q-factor of an Open Resonator for a Compact Soft X-ray Source based on Thomson Scattering of Stimulated Coherent Diffraction Radiation

3657

A.S. Aryshev, S. Araki, M.K. Fukuda, J. Urakawa
KEK, Ibaraki, Japan
V. Karataev
JAI, Egham, Surrey, United Kingdom
G.A. Naumenko
Tomsk Polytechnic University, Nuclear Physics Institute, Tomsk, Russia
A. Potylitsyn, L.G. Sukhikh, D. Verigin
TPU, Tomsk, Russia
K. Sakaue
RISE, Tokyo, Japan

High-brightness and reliable sources in the VUV and the soft X-ray region may be used for numerous applications in such areas as medicine, biology, biochemistry, material science, etc. We have proposed a new approach to produce the intense beams of X-rays in the range of eV based on Thomson scattering of Coherent Diffraction Radiation (CDR) on a 43 MeV electron beam. CDR is generated when a charged particle moves in the vicinity of an obstacle. The radiation is coherent when its wavelength is comparable to or longer than the bunch length. The CDR waves are generated in an opened resonator formed by two mirrors. In this report the status of the experiment, the first CDR measurements at the multibunch beam of the LUCX facility and general hardware design will be reported.

THPS096

Neutron-physical Characteristics of the Subcritical Setup with Natural Uranium Blanket Bombarded by 4 GeV Deuterons

3660

M. Artiushenko, Y.T. Petrusenko, V.V. Sotnikov, V.A. Voronko
NSC/KIPT, Kharkov, Ukraine
A.A. Patapenka, A.A. Safronava, I.V. Zhuk
JIPNR-Sosny NASB, Minsk, Belarus

An extended U/Pb-assembly was irradiated with an extracted beam of 4 GeV deuterons from the Nuclotron accelerator at the JINR, Dubna, Russia. Information on the spatial distributions of neutrons in the lead target and the uranium blanket was obtained with sets of activation detectors (natPb and natU) and solid state nuclear track detectors (SSNTD). Spatial distribution of the natPb, and natU fission reaction rates in the volume of the target and blanket installation were obtained using SSNTD techniques. Activation method was used to obtain the spatial distributions of 238U(n,g), 238U(n,f) reactions rates. The procedure of combining the track counting and gamma-spectrometry techniques for the determination of spectral indices is a new development. It includes gathering information from the same sample by SSNTD methods, i.e., counting the fission tracks of 238U, and also by gamma-spectrometry of 239Np production. Sets of spectral indices values (ratio of 238U(n,g) to 238U(n,f) reaction rates), representing the integral nuclear data were defined. Comparison between the experimental data and the calculations performed with the use of the computer numerical code FLUKA2008 was made.

Paper	Title	Page
THOAB01	Accelerator-driven Subcritical Molten-salt-fueled Reactors	2868
	R.P. Johnson Muons, Inc, Batavia, USA C. Bowman ADNA, Los Alamos, New Mexico, USA
	Reactors built using solid fissile materials sealed in fuel rods have an inherent safety problem in that volatile radioactive materials in the rods are accumulated and can be released in dangerous amounts. Accelerator parameters for subcritical reactors that have been considered in recent studies have primarily been based on using solid nuclear fuel much like that used in all operating critical reactors as well as the thorium-burning accelerator-driven energy amplifier proposed by Rubbia et al. An attractive alternative reactor design that used molten salts was experimentally studied at ORNL in the 1960s, where a critical molten salt reactor was successfully operated using enriched U235 or U233 tetrafluoride fuels. These experiments give confidence that an accelerator-driven subcritical molten salt reactor will work as well or better than conventional reactors, having better efficiency due to their higher operating temperature, having the inherent safety of subcritical operation, and having constant purging of volatile radioactive elements to eliminate their accumulation and potential accidental release in dangerous amounts.
	Slides THOAB01 [5.723 MB]

THPS094	New Approaches in High Power RFQ Technology	3654
	A. Bechtold, J.M. Maus, G. Ritter NTG Neue Technologien GmbH & Co KG, Gelnhausen, Germany
	There is a clear tendency for the utilization of continuous wave c.w. high power RFQs in a huge variety of applications like nuclear waste transmutation or material research. They can serve as injectors for the production of secondary particles like neutrons or rare isotopes and can be applied for post acceleration of the latter ones. These RF-structures have to withstand an enormous amount of RF-power dissipated on the surfaces (up to several 10s kW per meter) and the associated thermal load. NTG Company gained lots of experience especially in the field of 4-rod c.w. RFQ design. Most recent developments to handle such high RF-power dissipation shall be reported.

THPS095	Q-factor of an Open Resonator for a Compact Soft X-ray Source based on Thomson Scattering of Stimulated Coherent Diffraction Radiation	3657
	A.S. Aryshev, S. Araki, M.K. Fukuda, J. Urakawa KEK, Ibaraki, Japan V. Karataev JAI, Egham, Surrey, United Kingdom G.A. Naumenko Tomsk Polytechnic University, Nuclear Physics Institute, Tomsk, Russia A. Potylitsyn, L.G. Sukhikh, D. Verigin TPU, Tomsk, Russia K. Sakaue RISE, Tokyo, Japan
	High-brightness and reliable sources in the VUV and the soft X-ray region may be used for numerous applications in such areas as medicine, biology, biochemistry, material science, etc. We have proposed a new approach to produce the intense beams of X-rays in the range of eV based on Thomson scattering of Coherent Diffraction Radiation (CDR) on a 43 MeV electron beam. CDR is generated when a charged particle moves in the vicinity of an obstacle. The radiation is coherent when its wavelength is comparable to or longer than the bunch length. The CDR waves are generated in an opened resonator formed by two mirrors. In this report the status of the experiment, the first CDR measurements at the multibunch beam of the LUCX facility and general hardware design will be reported.

THPS096	Neutron-physical Characteristics of the Subcritical Setup with Natural Uranium Blanket Bombarded by 4 GeV Deuterons	3660
	M. Artiushenko, Y.T. Petrusenko, V.V. Sotnikov, V.A. Voronko NSC/KIPT, Kharkov, Ukraine A.A. Patapenka, A.A. Safronava, I.V. Zhuk JIPNR-Sosny NASB, Minsk, Belarus
	An extended U/Pb-assembly was irradiated with an extracted beam of 4 GeV deuterons from the Nuclotron accelerator at the JINR, Dubna, Russia. Information on the spatial distributions of neutrons in the lead target and the uranium blanket was obtained with sets of activation detectors (natPb and natU) and solid state nuclear track detectors (SSNTD). Spatial distribution of the natPb, and natU fission reaction rates in the volume of the target and blanket installation were obtained using SSNTD techniques. Activation method was used to obtain the spatial distributions of 238U(n,g), 238U(n,f) reactions rates. The procedure of combining the track counting and gamma-spectrometry techniques for the determination of spectral indices is a new development. It includes gathering information from the same sample by SSNTD methods, i.e., counting the fission tracks of 238U, and also by gamma-spectrometry of 239Np production. Sets of spectral indices values (ratio of 238U(n,g) to 238U(n,f) reaction rates), representing the integral nuclear data were defined. Comparison between the experimental data and the calculations performed with the use of the computer numerical code FLUKA2008 was made.