Neutronic simulation of China experimental fast reactor start-up tests- part II: MCS code Monte Carlo calculation

Abstract

The International Atomic Energy Agency and the China Institute of Atomic Energy proposed a coordinated research project (CRP) to establish a benchmark, based on the China Experimental Fast Reactor (CEFR) start-up tests which include fuel loading and criticality, measurements of control rod worth and reactivity coefficients, and foil activation measurements. As a participant in the CRP, the computational reactor physics and experiment laboratory of the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology has been studying and analyzing the neutronic performance of the CEFR. The verification and validation are performed for the simulations in the CEFR analysis. A verification process of the methodology was conducted to compare the predicted results with those obtained by a well-known MCNP6.1 Monte Carlo code. The results obtained by the MCS code were compared against the experimental data. The difference in various wire models at the critical state are evaluated in this study.