Nuclear Engineering and Technology

Korean Nuclear Society (한국원자력학회)
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Clustering and traveling waves in the Monte Carlo criticality simulation of decoupled and confined media

  • Dumonteil, Eric (Institut de Radioprotection et de Surete Nucleaire, IRSN/PSN-EXP/SNC) ;
  • Bruna, Giovanni (Institut de Radioprotection et de Surete Nucleaire, IRSN/PSN-EXP/SNC) ;
  • Malvagi, Fausto (Den-Service D'etudes des Reacteurs et de Mathematiques Appliquees (SERMA), CEA, Universite Paris-Saclay) ;
  • Onillon, Anthony (Institut de Radioprotection et de Surete Nucleaire, IRSN/PSN-EXP/SNC) ;
  • Richet, Yann (Institut de Radioprotection et de Surete Nucleaire, IRSN/PSN-EXP/SNC)
  • Received : 2017.06.03
  • Accepted : 2017.07.26
  • Published : 2017.09.25
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Abstract

The Monte Carlo criticality simulation of decoupled systems, as for instance in large reactor cores, has been a challenging issue for a long time. In particular, due to limited computer time resources, the number of neutrons simulated per generation is still many order of magnitudes below realistic statistics, even during the start-up phases of reactors. This limited number of neutrons triggers a strong clustering effect of the neutron population that affects Monte Carlo tallies. Below a certain threshold, not only is the variance affected but also the estimation of the eigenvectors. In this paper we will build a time-dependent diffusion equation that takes into account both spatial correlations and population control (fixed number of neutrons along generations). We will show that its solution obeys a traveling wave dynamic, and we will discuss the mechanism that explains this biasing of local tallies whenever leakage boundary conditions are applied to the system.

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