An analytical solution to time-dependent fission-product diffusion in an HTGR core

Abstract

An analytical time-dependent fission-product diffusion model is solved for the fuel-moderator regions of a high temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) during a hypothetical loss of forced circulation (LOFC) accident. A conservative approximate 1-D model is developed for the fuel and moderator regions, represented in cylindrical and slab geometries, from consideration of the hexagonal fuel-element symmetry. Transport is assumed along the shortest diffusion path and the concentration change across the fuel-moderator interface is approximated by a jump condition. The model is solved by construction of the Green's functions for the Laplace-transformed equations and identification of the pole structure. The concentration and current inverse Laplace transforms are obtained by the Cauchy residue theorem in each region for cubic piecewise polynomial initial conditions. A computer program was developed and validated to evaluate the solution, serve as a benchmark for more sophisticated numerical models and to investigate 90Sr diffusion during a hypothetical LOFC.