Speaker
Prof.
SRINIVASAN GANESAN
(Bhabha Atomic Research Centre)
Description
The development of Accelerator Driven Sub-critical Systems proposed by Carlo Rubbia
and others require significant amount of new nuclear data in extended energy regions
and significant improvement of the presently available nuclear data. The ADSS
concepts have given a fresh look at the use of thorium fuel cycle in a lead-bismuth
coolant environment. The nuclear data of isotopes of thorium fuel cycle need new
measurements to bring their status to at least to a level on par to those of U-Pu
cycle. The talk will present a number of illustrative examples. The Indian
participation in the n_TOF programmes stands to benefit not only in her ADSS studies
for thorium utilization but also because there is a considerable overlap between the
Advanced Heavy Water Reactor (AHWR) and Compact High Temperature Reactor (CHTR)
Indian programmes with respect to thorium as a fuel and the on-going international
efforts to develop innovative, inherently safe, proliferation-resistant and long-
life-cores, with features using thorium such as in INPRO and Generation IV systems.
Reliable design and operator’s manual, based upon accurate knowledge of nuclear
data, for each stage of the nuclear fuel cycle of the ADSS and other advanced
concepts will help in safe use of nuclear energy by providing proper guidance on
safety precautions and behaviour under all system conditions. For multiple recycled
fuels, the quality of nuclear data of higher isotopes of plutonium, minor actinides
(e.g., isotopes of Am and Cm) and fission products need to be brought on par to that
of main fissile and fertile nuclei. The role of n_TOF measurements to meet the
demands on accurate nuclear data in the extended resolved resonance region that
affect plant safety related feedback coefficients such as Doppler and coolant void
reactivity effects as a function of burn-up for advanced systems are high. The
experimental validation efforts in critical facilities can never exactly verify the
simulated states of higher burn-up. Improved nuclear data are therefore essential
for fission products and minor actinides in developing advanced reactor systems,
such as actinide burner systems and to reduce the number of costly integral
experiments.
Preliminary research for the Energy Amplifier concept proposed by Carlo Rubbia and
others in the world use existing nuclear data developed for thermal, fast and fusion
reactors and those generated towards fundamental physics understanding of the
nucleus and applications such as in astrophysics. The quality assurance in design
and safety studies in nuclear energy in the next few decades and centuries require
new and improved nuclear data with high accuracy and energy resolution that is
possible only with the facilities such as the CERN n_TOF. Carefully planned
measurements with facilities such as n_TOF are essential as the existing strength of
the state-of-the-art nuclear databases in use for various applications is highly
commendable but inadequate to meet the nuclear data needs of new reactor concepts as
different neutron energy spectra and materials and compositions are involved. As a
general rule, the generation of new nuclear data by the international community
should continue to be encouraged as more intense neutron sources, purer
elemental/isotopic target samples, more efficient detectors and better electronics
evolve. Required scientific activities also are extensive follow up of experimental
data generation with a comprehensive compilation, critical evaluation, production of
new ENDF/B formatted libraries extending to higher energies, and quality assured
nuclear data processing activities to provide the designers/users/ of innovative
systems with “ready to plug-in” processed data, that are integrally validated, for
use in applications.
Primary author
Prof.
SRINIVASAN GANESAN
(Bhabha Atomic Research Centre)
