2024 - Sustainable Industrial Processing Summit
SIPS 2024 Volume 8. Monteiro Intl. Symp / Composite, Ceramic and Nano Materials Processing
| Editors: | F. Kongoli, P. Assis, H.A.C. Lopera, S. Diaz, V. Scarpini Candido |
| Publisher: | Flogen Star OUTREACH |
| Publication Year: | 2024 |
| Pages: | 288 pages |
| ISBN: | 978-1-998384-18-1 (CD) |
| ISSN: | 2291-1227 (Metals and Materials Processing in a Clean Environment Series) |
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SIMULATION OF A HYPOTHETICAL NUCLEAR FUEL ELEMENT WITH NIOBIUM-DOPED ZIRCALOY CLADDING
Ary Machado de Azevedo1; Thomaz Jacintho Lopes2; Sergio Monteiro1; Marcos Paulo Cavaliere de Medeiros1; Fernando Manuel Araújo Moreira1; André Ben-Hur da Silva Figueiredo1;1MILITARY INSTITUTE OF ENGINEERING, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; 2MILITARY INSTITUTE OF ENGINEERING, Duque de Caxias, Brazil;
Type of Paper: Regular
Id Paper: 221
Topic: 18
Abstract:
The quest for enhanced materials in the nuclear industry is escalating alongside the surge in energy demand. This drive has led to the exploration of novel materials aimed at optimizing nuclear applications[1-2]. Among these, niobium has long been scrutinized as an alloying agent due to its advantageous attributes, including low thermal neutron absorption and robustness under the extreme conditions prevailing within nuclear reactors. A pivotal aspect of reactor operation revolves around comprehending the behavior of fuel rods during the fission process of UO2 pellets and, by extension, the dynamics of heat transfer therein. To delve into these critical parameters, a study delved into the crucial matter of a fuel rod sheathed in niobium-doped Zircaloy, employing MCNP code simulations. These simulations encompassed a variety of enrichment levels (3.2%, 2.5%, and 1.9% UO2) based on a hypothetical PWR reactor model[3]. The investigation focused on assessing the criticality of fuel rods encased in Zircaloy-4 doped with niobium nanoparticles. MCNP5 code facilitated the simulations, modeling a fuel element comprising 25 rods housing UO2 pellets across three enrichment zones[4-5]. The fuel element's height stood at 3.6 meters. Utilizing the kcode method, the criticality of the simulated fuel was evaluated. A total of 10,000 neutrons per cycle were employed over 100 cycles, half of which were passive. The analysis yielded an effective multiplication factor (keff) of 1.380303 ± 0.0007 for the coated rod, compared to 1.39207 ± 0.00072 for the reference undoped rod, reflecting a relative deviation of approximately |δ| ≈ 0.84%. Notably, doping Zircaloy with niobium nanoparticles showcased no substantial influence on neutron production, preserving the alloy's energy production efficiency. This observation underscores the potential for enhancing Zircaloy's properties through niobium nanoparticle doping without compromising energy production efficiency [6-8]. The marginal relative deviation in keff values between doped and undoped rods suggests minimal impact on criticality. Hence, niobium nanoparticle doping emerges as a promising avenue for refining alloy properties while maintaining energy production efficiency. Nonetheless, further research is warranted to validate these findings and delve deeper into the advantages of niobium doping.