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Fission Product Benchmarking for Burnup Credit Applications
Fission Product Benchmarking for Burnup Credit Applications
Progress toward developing a technical basis for a cost-effective burnup credit methodology for
spent nuclear fuel with initial U-235 enrichment up to 5% is presented. Present regulatory
practices provide as much burnup credit flexibility as can be currently expected. Further progress
is achievable by incorporating the negative reactivity effects of a subset of neutron-absorbing
fission product isotopes. Progress also depends on optimizing the procedure for establishing the
Phenomena and Parameters Important to Burnup Credit
Phenomena and Parameters Important to Burnup Credit
Since the mid-1980s, a significant number of studies have been directed at understanding the phenomena and
parameters important to implementation of burnup credit in out-of-reactor applications involving pressurizedwater-
reactor (PWR) spent fuel. The efforts directed at burnup credit involving boiling-water-reactor (BWR)
spent fuel have been more limited. This paper reviews the knowledge and experience gained from work
performed in the United States and other countries in the study of burnup credit. Relevant physics and analysis
Review and Prioritization of Technical Issues Related to Burnup Credit for LWR Fuel
Review and Prioritization of Technical Issues Related to Burnup Credit for LWR Fuel
This report has been prepared to review relevant background information and provide technical discussion that will help initiate a PIRT (Phenomena Identification and Ranking Tables) process for use of burnup credit in light-water reactor (LWR) spent fuel storage and transport cask applications. The PIRT process will be used by the NRC Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research to help prioritize and guide a coordinated program of research and as a means to obtain input/feedback from industry and other interested parties.
Safety Evaluation Report for Disposal Criticality Analysis Methodology Topical Report, Revision 0
Safety Evaluation Report for Disposal Criticality Analysis Methodology Topical Report, Revision 0
In January 1999, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)/Office of Civilian Radioactive
Waste Management (OCRWM) submitted the Disposal Criticality Analysis Methodology
Topical Report, Revision 0 (TR) to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for
review and approval. The TR presents an overall approach for consideration of postclosure
disposal criticality of commercial and defense high-level waste to be placed at
the proposed Yucca Mountain site. During the course of the review and interactions
Disposal Criticality Analysis Methodology Topical Report
Disposal Criticality Analysis Methodology Topical Report
The fundamental objective of this topical report is to present the planned risk-informed disposal criticality analysis methodology to the NRC to seek acceptance that the principles of the methodology and the planned approach to validating the methodology are sound. The design parameters and environmental assumptions within which the waste forms will reside are currently not fully established and will vary with the detailed waste package design, engineered barrier design, repository design, and repository layout.
Regulations for the Safe Transport of Radioactive Material - 2005 Edition
Regulations for the Safe Transport of Radioactive Material - 2005 Edition
101. These Regulations establish standards of safety which provide an
acceptable level of control of the radiation, criticality and thermal hazards to
persons, property and the environment that are associated with the transport of
radioactive material. These Regulations utilize the principles set forth in both
the “Radiation Protection and the Safety of Radiation Sources”, Safety Series
No. 120 [1] and the “International Basic Safety Standards for Protection
against Ionizing Radiation and for the Safety of Radiation Sources”, Safety
ANSI/ANS-8.27-2008: Burnup Credit for LWR Fuel
ANSI/ANS-8.27-2008: Burnup Credit for LWR Fuel
This standard provides criteria for accounting for reactivity effects of fuel irradiation and radioactive decay in criticality safety control of storage, transportation, and disposal of commercial LWR UO2 fuel assemblies.
This standard assumes the fuel and any fixed burnable absorbers are contained in an intact assembly. Additional considerations could be necessary for fuel assemblies that have been disassembled, consolidated, damaged, or reconfigured in any manner.
Criticality Analysis of Assembly Misload in a PWR Burnup Credit Cask
Criticality Analysis of Assembly Misload in a PWR Burnup Credit Cask
The Interim Staff Guidance on burnup credit (ISG-8) for spent fuel in storage and transportation casks, issued by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s Spent Fuel Project Office, recommends a burnup measurement for each assembly to confirm the reactor record and compliance with the assembly burnup value used for loading acceptance. This recommendation is intended to prevent unauthorized loading (misloading) of assemblies due to inaccuracies in reactor burnup records and/or improper assembly identification, thereby ensuring that the appropriate subcritical margin is maintained.
Integrated Issue Resolution Status Report
Integrated Issue Resolution Status Report
This Integrated Issue Resolution Status Report provides background information about the status of prelicensing interactions between the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) concerning a potential high-level waste geologic repository at Yucca Mountain, Nevada. The NRC staff has, for many years, engaged in prelicensing interactions with DOE and various stakeholders.
Experimental Investigation of Burnup Credit for Safe Transport, Storage, and Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel
Experimental Investigation of Burnup Credit for Safe Transport, Storage, and Disposal of Spent Nuclear Fuel
Burnup Credit - Technical Basis for Spent-Fuel Burnup Verification
Burnup Credit - Technical Basis for Spent-Fuel Burnup Verification
Present regulatory practices provide as much burnup credit flexibility as can be currently
expected. Further progress is achievable by incorporating the negative reactivity effects of a
subset of neutron-absorbing fission-product isotopes, and by optimizing the procedural approach
for establishing the burnup characteristics of the spent fuel to be loaded in burnup-creditdesigned
storage and transportation systems. This report describes progress toward developing a
International Comparison of a Depletion Calculation Benchmark on Fuel Cycle Issues - Results from Phase 1 on UOx Fuels
International Comparison of a Depletion Calculation Benchmark on Fuel Cycle Issues - Results from Phase 1 on UOx Fuels
Although there are many reactor system benchmarks in the literature, they mostly
concentrate on the reactor system in isolation with only a few considering the fuel cycle.
However, there is currently increased emphasis on the performance of reactor systems
linked to their associated fuel cycle (Generation-IV for example). The published
international benchmark studies which relate to burn-up depletion calculations are
restricted to specific aspects of the fuel cycle:
BWR Axial Profile
BWR Axial Profile
Computational Benchmark for Estimated Reactivity Margin from Fission Products and Minor Actinides in BWR Burnup Credit
Computational Benchmark for Estimated Reactivity Margin from Fission Products and Minor Actinides in BWR Burnup Credit
This report proposes and documents a computational benchmark for the estimation of the
additional reactivity margin available in spent nuclear fuel (SNF) from fission products and minor
actinides in a burnup-credit storage/transport environment, relative to SNF compositions
containing only the major actinides. The benchmark problem/configuration is a generic burnupcredit
cask designed to hold 68 boiling water reactor (BWR) spent nuclear fuel assemblies. The
purpose of this computational benchmark is to provide a reference configuration for the
Review and Prioritization of Technical Issues Related to Burnup Credit for BWR Fuel
Review and Prioritization of Technical Issues Related to Burnup Credit for BWR Fuel
This report has been prepared to support technical discussion of and planning for future
research supporting implementation of burnup credit for boiling-water reactor (BWR) spent fuel
storage in spent fuel pools and storage and transport cask applications. The review and
discussion in this report are based on knowledge and experience gained from work performed
in the United States and other countries, including experience with burnup credit for
pressurized-water reactor (PWR) spent fuel. Relevant physics and analysis phenomena are
Transportation and Storage Subcommittee Report to the Full Commission - Updated Report
Transportation and Storage Subcommittee Report to the Full Commission - Updated Report
To organize its investigation of whether changes are needed in the nation’s current approach to storing and eventually transporting spent nuclear fuel (SNF) and high-level waste (HLW), the Subcommittee began by asking a series of related questions:
• What role should storage play in an integrated U.S. waste management system and strategy in the future?
Options for Developing Public and Stakeholder Engagement for the Storage and Management of Spent Nuclear Fuel (SNF) and High Lievel Waste (HLW) in the United States
Options for Developing Public and Stakeholder Engagement for the Storage and Management of Spent Nuclear Fuel (SNF) and High Lievel Waste (HLW) in the United States
This report puts forth a number of options and recommendations for how to engage
stakeholders and other members of the public in the storage and management of spent
nuclear fuel and high level waste in the United States. The options are generated from a
scientific review of existing publications proposing criteria for assessing past efforts to
engage publics and stakeholders in decision-making about risky technologies. A set of
nine principles are derived for evaluating cases of public and stakeholder engagement with
Benchmarks for Quantifying Fuel Reactivity Depletion Uncertainty
Benchmarks for Quantifying Fuel Reactivity Depletion Uncertainty
Analytical methods, described in this report, are used to
systematically determine experimental fuel sub-batch
reactivities as a function of burnup. Fuel sub-batch reactivities
are inferred using more than 600 in-core pressurized water
reactor (PWR) flux maps taken during 44 cycles of operation
at the Catawba and McGuire nuclear power plants. The
analytical methods systematically search for fuel sub-batch
reactivities that minimize differences between measured and
computed reaction rates, using Studsvik Scandpower’s
Utilization of the EPRI Depletion Benchmarks for Burnup Credit Validation
Utilization of the EPRI Depletion Benchmarks for Burnup Credit Validation
Pressurized water reactor (PWR) burnup credit validation is
demonstrated using the benchmarks for quantifying fuel reactivity
decrements, published as Benchmarks for Quantifying Fuel Reactivity
Depletion Uncertainty, Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI)
report 1022909. This demonstration uses the depletion module
TRITON (Transport Rigor Implemented with Time-Dependent
Operation for Neutronic Depletion) available in the SCALE 6.1
(Standardized Computer Analyses for Licensing Evaluations) code
Feasibility of Direct Disposal of Dual-Purpose Canisters-Options for Assuring Criticality Control
Feasibility of Direct Disposal of Dual-Purpose Canisters-Options for Assuring Criticality Control
The concept of direct disposal of dual-purpose canisters (DPCs) has not been previously considered
for the Yucca Mountain geologic repository because of concerns, among other reasons,
about degradation of the reactivity-control material over the relatively long period of the repository
analyses. Aluminum-based neutron absorber materials, typically used in DPCs, are not
expected to have sufficient corrosion resistance necessary to retain their integrity over a 10,000+
Japan's Spent Fuel and Plutonium Management Challenges
Japan's Spent Fuel and Plutonium Management Challenges
Japan’s spent fuel management and fuel cycle programs are now at a critical stage. Its first commercial-scale reprocessing plant, at Rokkasho Village, will soon start full-scale operation.
Disposal and Storage of Spent Nuclear Fuel--Finding the Right Balance--A Report to Congress and the Secretary of Energy
Disposal and Storage of Spent Nuclear Fuel--Finding the Right Balance--A Report to Congress and the Secretary of Energy
The Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, as amended, established a statutory basis
for managing the nation’s civilian (or commercially produced) spent nuclear
fuel. The law established a process for siting, developing, licensing, and constructing
an underground repository for the permanent disposal of that waste.
Utilities were given the primary responsibility for storing spent fuel until it is
accepted by the Department of Energy (DOE) for disposal at a repository —
originally expected to begin operating in 1998. Since then, however, the repository
Topical Report on Actinide-Only Burnup Credit for PWR Spent Nuclear Fuel Packages
Topical Report on Actinide-Only Burnup Credit for PWR Spent Nuclear Fuel Packages
A methodology for performing and applying nuclear criticality safety calculations, for PWR spent nuclear fuel (SNF) packages with actinide-only burnup credit, is described. The changes in the U-234, U-235, U-236, U-238, Pu-238, Pu-239, Pu-240, Pu-241, Pu-242, and Am-241 concentration with burnup are used in burnup credit criticality analyses. No credit for fission product neutron absorbers is taken. The methodology consists of five major steps. (1) Validate a computer code system to calculate isotopic concentrations of SNF created during burnup in the reactor core and subsequent decay.