Increased fuel burn up in a CANDU thorium reactor using weapon grade plutonium

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dc.contributor.authorŞahin, Sümer
dc.contributor.authorYIldIz, Kadir
dc.contributor.authorŞahin, Hacı Mehmet
dc.contributor.authorŞahin, Necmettin
dc.contributor.authorAcır, Adem
dc.date.accessioned13.07.201910:50:10
dc.date.accessioned2019-07-16T08:24:34Z
dc.date.available13.07.201910:50:10
dc.date.available2019-07-16T08:24:34Z
dc.date.issued2006
dc.departmentMühendislik Fakültesi
dc.description.abstractWeapon grade plutonium is used as a booster fissile fuel material in the form of mixed ThO2/PuO2 fuel in a Canada Deuterium Uranium (CANDU) fuel bundle in order to assure the initial criticality at startup. Two different fuel compositions have been used: (1) 97% thoria (ThO2) + 3%PuO2 and (2) 92% ThO2 + 5% UO2 + 3% PuO2. The latter is used to denaturize the new 233U fuel with 238U. The temporal variation of the criticality k? and the burn-up values of the reactor have been calculated by full power operation for a period of 20 years. The criticality starts by k? = ~1.48 for both fuel compositions. A sharp decrease of the criticality has been observed in the first year as a consequence of rapid plutonium burnout. The criticality becomes quasi constant after the second year and remains above k? > 1.06 for ~20 years. After the second year, the CANDU reactor begins to operate practically as a thorium burner. Very high burn up could be achieved with the same fuel material (up to 500,000 MW·D/T), provided that the fuel rod claddings would be replaced periodically (after every 50,000 or 100,000 MW·D/T). The reactor criticality will be sufficient until a great fraction of the thorium fuel is burnt up. This would reduce fuel fabrication costs and nuclear waste mass for final disposal per unit energy drastically.
dc.description.sponsorshipThis work has been supported by the Research Fund of the Gazi University, Project #07/2003-14.
dc.identifier.doi10.1016/j.nucengdes.2006.01.014
dc.identifier.endpage1788en_US
dc.identifier.issn0029-5493
dc.identifier.issue17en_US
dc.identifier.scopusqualityQ2
dc.identifier.startpage1778en_US
dc.identifier.urihttps://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nucengdes.2006.01.014
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12451/2939
dc.identifier.volume236en_US
dc.indekslendigikaynakScopus
dc.language.isoen
dc.relation.ispartofNuclear Engineering and Design
dc.relation.publicationcategoryMakale - Uluslararası Hakemli Dergi - Kurum Öğretim Elemanı
dc.rightsinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.titleIncreased fuel burn up in a CANDU thorium reactor using weapon grade plutonium
dc.typeArticle

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