Fuel assemblies loading pattern optimization of pressurized water reactors using the trees social relations algorithm

Abstract

Pressurized water reactors (PWR) are a type of light water nuclear reactors that constitute most nuclear power plants in the world. In PWRs, the initial coolant is water that is pumped into the reactor core with high pressure where it is heated by the energy released from nuclear fission. Then, the high-pressure hot water flows into a steam generator where its thermal energy is transferred to the water with lower pressure, and steam is generated. The steam, then, spins turbines that rotate an electrical generator to generate power. It is crucial to increase the safety of PWRs in nuclear power plants. A measure to ensure the safety of these reactors is to optimize the fuel assemblies loading (FAL) pattern. This paper presents a method to optimize the FAL pattern of PWRs by the trees social relations (TSR) optimization algorithm. The TSR algorithm is a metaheuristic algorithm inspired by the hierarchical life of trees in the jungle. The proposed method models the problem of FAL pattern optimization by the TSR algorithm. This method is practically compared with other methods. Based on the results, it outperforms similar methods in terms of the multiplication factor, power flattening, and fitness of the final solution.