A comparison of the PARET/ANL and RELAP5/MOD3 codes for the analysis of IAEA benchmark transients

The PARET/ANL and RELAP5/MOD3 codes are used to analyze the series of benchmark transients specified for the IAEA Research Reactor Core Conversion Guidebook (IAEA-TECDOC-643, Vol. 3). The computed results for these loss-of-flow and reactivity insertion transients with scram are in excellent agreement and agree well with the earlier results reported in the guidebook. Attempts to also compare RELAP5/MOD3 with the SPERT series of experiments are in progress

Development of a steady state creep behavior model of polycrystalline tungsten for bimodal space reactor application

The fuel element for one of the many reactor concepts being currently evaluated for bimodal applications in space consists of spherical fuel particles clad with tungsten or alloys of tungsten. The fuel itself consists of stabilized UO{sub 2}. One of the life limiting phenomena for the fuel element is failure of the cladding because of creep deformation. This report summarizes the information available in literature regarding the creep deformation of tungsten and its alloys and proposes a relation to be used for calculating the creep strains for elevated temperatures in the low stress region ({sigma} {le} 20 MPa). Also, results of the application of this creep relation to one of the reactor design concepts (NEBA-3) are discussed. Based on the traditional definition of creep deformation, the temperatures of 1500 K to 2900 K for tungsten and its alloys are considered to be in the {open_quotes}high{close_quotes} temperature range. In this temperature range, the rate controlling mechanisms for creep deformation are believed to be non-conservative motion of screw dislocations and short circuit diffusional paths. Extensive theoretical work on creep and in particular for creep of tungsten and its alloys have been reported in the literature. These theoretical efforts have produced complex mathematical models that require detailed materials properties. These relations, however, are not presently suitable for the creep analysis because of lack of consistent material properties required for their use. Variations in material chemistry and thermomechanical pre-treatment of tungsten have significant effects on creep and the mechanical properties. Analysis of the theoretical models and limited data indicates that the following empirical relation originally proposed by M. Jacox of INEL and the Air Force Phillips Laboratory, for calculating creep deformation of tungsten cladding, can be used for the downselection of preliminary bimodal reactor design concepts

Multiorgan MRI findings after hospitalisation with COVID-19 in the UK (C-MORE): a prospective, multicentre, observational cohort study

Introduction: The multiorgan impact of moderate to severe coronavirus infections in the post-acute phase is still poorly understood. We aimed to evaluate the excess burden of multiorgan abnormalities after hospitalisation with COVID-19, evaluate their determinants, and explore associations with patient-related outcome measures. Methods: In a prospective, UK-wide, multicentre MRI follow-up study (C-MORE), adults (aged ≥18 years) discharged from hospital following COVID-19 who were included in Tier 2 of the Post-hospitalisation COVID-19 study (PHOSP-COVID) and contemporary controls with no evidence of previous COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid antibody negative) underwent multiorgan MRI (lungs, heart, brain, liver, and kidneys) with quantitative and qualitative assessment of images and clinical adjudication when relevant. Individuals with end-stage renal failure or contraindications to MRI were excluded. Participants also underwent detailed recording of symptoms, and physiological and biochemical tests. The primary outcome was the excess burden of multiorgan abnormalities (two or more organs) relative to controls, with further adjustments for potential confounders. The C-MORE study is ongoing and is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04510025. Findings: Of 2710 participants in Tier 2 of PHOSP-COVID, 531 were recruited across 13 UK-wide C-MORE sites. After exclusions, 259 C-MORE patients (mean age 57 years [SD 12]; 158 [61%] male and 101 [39%] female) who were discharged from hospital with PCR-confirmed or clinically diagnosed COVID-19 between March 1, 2020, and Nov 1, 2021, and 52 non-COVID-19 controls from the community (mean age 49 years [SD 14]; 30 [58%] male and 22 [42%] female) were included in the analysis. Patients were assessed at a median of 5·0 months (IQR 4·2–6·3) after hospital discharge. Compared with non-COVID-19 controls, patients were older, living with more obesity, and had more comorbidities. Multiorgan abnormalities on MRI were more frequent in patients than in controls (157 [61%] of 259 vs 14 [27%] of 52; p<0·0001) and independently associated with COVID-19 status (odds ratio [OR] 2·9 [95% CI 1·5–5·8]; padjusted=0·0023) after adjusting for relevant confounders. Compared with controls, patients were more likely to have MRI evidence of lung abnormalities (p=0·0001; parenchymal abnormalities), brain abnormalities (p<0·0001; more white matter hyperintensities and regional brain volume reduction), and kidney abnormalities (p=0·014; lower medullary T1 and loss of corticomedullary differentiation), whereas cardiac and liver MRI abnormalities were similar between patients and controls. Patients with multiorgan abnormalities were older (difference in mean age 7 years [95% CI 4–10]; mean age of 59·8 years [SD 11·7] with multiorgan abnormalities vs mean age of 52·8 years [11·9] without multiorgan abnormalities; p<0·0001), more likely to have three or more comorbidities (OR 2·47 [1·32–4·82]; padjusted=0·0059), and more likely to have a more severe acute infection (acute CRP >5mg/L, OR 3·55 [1·23–11·88]; padjusted=0·025) than those without multiorgan abnormalities. Presence of lung MRI abnormalities was associated with a two-fold higher risk of chest tightness, and multiorgan MRI abnormalities were associated with severe and very severe persistent physical and mental health impairment (PHOSP-COVID symptom clusters) after hospitalisation. Interpretation: After hospitalisation for COVID-19, people are at risk of multiorgan abnormalities in the medium term. Our findings emphasise the need for proactive multidisciplinary care pathways, with the potential for imaging to guide surveillance frequency and therapeutic stratification

Review of the turbine-building flooding study of the Oconee PRA

A peer review of the Oconee Probabilistic Risk Assessment (OPRA) for Unit no. 3 was conducted at BNL for the NRC. This paper discusses the review of the OPRA turbine-building internal-flooding study, which is one of the dominant contributors, and was performed in great detail. This paper also includes a comparison with other flooding studies performed elsewhere. 5 refs., 1 tab

Determination of the design excess reactivity for the TREAT Upgrade reactor

The excess reactivity designed to be built into a reactor core is a primary determinant of the fissile loadings of the fuel rods in the core. For the TREAT Upgrade (TU) reactor the considerations that enter into the determination of the excess reactivity are different from those of conventional power reactors. The reactor is designed to operate in an adiabatic transient mode for reactor safety in-pile test programs. The primary constituent of the excess reactivity is the calculated reactivity required to perform the most demanding transient experiments. Because of the unavailability of supporting critical experiments for the core design, the uncertainty terms that add on to this basic constituent are rather large. The burnup effects in TU are negligible and no refueling is planned. In this paper the determination of the design excess reactivity of the TREAT Upgrade reactor is discussed

Approaches and results for recent shutdown risk studies in the US

This paper provides a description of the methods/approaches used in three contemporary Probabilistic Safety Assessments for two PWRs (Seabrook and Surry) and for one BWR (Grand Gulf ). The results for the core damage frequency for those studies and the most important contributors are discussed. A summary of the novel approaches (when compared to PSAs for power operation) introduced in these studies is provided

Core length testable reactor concept neutronic analysis

Development work on thermionic reactor systems has been ongoing in the US since the early 1950s. While significant successes were achieved, progress has been hampered by frequent changes in direction and funding instabilities (as has been true for many high technology initiatives). The recent Air Force thermionics initiative (1991) represents the latest in thermionics reactor development in the US. This Air Force initiative called for the development of thermionics reactors with the output power of about 40 kWe, and which incorporated the features of testability, fabricability, low development cost, high level of safety and reliability, and survivability. Several concepts were analyzed to define a design that would meet all the requirements set forth by the Air Force. This report describes the methodology used, the different designs analyzed and reasons for the evolution of the design, and presents the results for the different concepts

GIS-based tools for optimising municipal solid waste collection and transportation routes

The selection of optimal routes can save time and cost in handling the waste. Thus, the current study was designed to optimise the waste disposal routes with the possible shortest travel time using geographic information system (GIS). The collected data were analysed through statistical tools, including Pearson's correlation and regression analysis, using SPSS, version 20. The explanation from the linear regression analysis indicated that 67.4% of the variables selected for the regression gave reasonable indications for the analysis of waste transportation time in the study area. In addition, the other independent variables such as population and number of stops also have a positive and significant impact on the travel time. The resulted predictive model showed the best suitability that could be implemented to resolve the basic solid waste problems in other cities of Pakistan. Furthermore, it can be used to capture data from different fields to resolve transport problems

Dynamics analyses of space power systems using the salt code

The dynamic behavior of large space power systems has been identified as a significant technical issue. To date several analyses of reactor kinetics have been reported in the literature, but there have been few (if any) studies of the dynamic response of the entire space power system. The problem is complex and required analytical methods are not generally available. Furthermore, given the conceptual state of current MMW space power systems designs, dynamic models of components are not generally available. We have used the SALT code to perform preliminary analyses of the startup and shutdown transients of several proposed MMW system designs. In this paper we will provide a description of the code methodology and present results of the analyses performed for the NERVA derivative reactor (NDR) system. 3 refs., 3 figs