Power calculation of VVER-1000 reactor using a thermal method, applied to primary–secondary circuits

Abstract

In this study, an in-operation VVER-1000 reactor thermal power is analyzed by a thermal method for the primary circuit and a heat balance procedure for the secondary circuit. The results are compared with the measurements by in-core and out-core neutron flux (power) monitoring instruments. The calculated values of reactor thermal power by the thermal method are comparable with the reactor power measured by the instruments. The thermal method, which is used in the average power calculation, leads to a smaller error in comparison with the other applied methods.