Benchmark experiment on silicon carbide with D–T neutrons and validation of nuclear data libraries

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Silicon carbide (SiC) is one of the low activation structural materials for fusion reactors. A benchmark experiment on SiC was conducted at the deuterium–tritium (D–T) neutron source facility FNS in JAERI, and the validity of the cross section data for SiC was investigated. An experimental assembly made of sintered SiC (457×457 mm, and 711 mm in thickness) was bombarded by D–T neutrons, and neutron spectra, gamma-ray spectra, dosimetry reaction rates and gamma-ray heating rates were measured in the assembly. Computational analyses of the experiment were performed by Monte Carlo transport calculations with the MCNP-4B code and several recent evaluated nuclear data files. The following findings were pointed out. The calculations with JENDL Fusion File and JENDL-3.2 predicted adequately the neutron fluxes from 14 MeV to 0.3 eV as well as the gamma-ray fluxes at any positions up to ∼600 mm depth in the SiC assembly. Results for the calculation with FENDL/E-2.0 were similar to those with the two JENDL calculations, but the neutron fluxes in the energy range from 1 to 14 MeV were calculated slightly smaller. The cross section data for silicon in FENDL/E-1.0 were found inadequate for nuclear design calculations.