Safety Assessment of

Core Conversion

J.E. Matos
RERTR Program
Argonne National Laboratory

Presented at US / IAEA Regional Workshop on

Application of the Code of Conduct on the
Safety of Research Reactors
Argonne National Laboratory
30 April – 11 May 2007
Background on Conversion Analyses

„ This lecture is mostly about the safety analyses that need to be done for
conversion of research reactor fuel from HEU to LEU. Related analyses
and tasks will also be discussed.

„ The ideas involved and the examples are also applicable to any type of
fuel change (e.g., from one LEU fuel to a more highly-loaded LEU fuel) or
to the analyses that may need to be redone for renewal of an operating
license.

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Example Research Reactor Types

HFR Petten, TRIGA Reactor

Netherlands ATR, Idaho

DRR, Vietnam IRT-1, Libya VR-1, Czech Republic

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Example Research Reactor Fuels

Western Fuel Types

MTR-type MTR-type
MIT ATR, Idaho

Russian Fuel Types TRIGA-type Fuel Rod

WWR-2M: Vietnam, IRT-3M: Uzbekistan, Russia IRT-2M: Czech Rep. WWR-TS

Ukraine, Hungary Kazakhstan

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Conversion Analysis Steps:
– Perform FEASIBILITY STUDIES to determine suitable LEU fuel assembly
designs for each reactor:
• Design fuel assemblies using qualified LEU fuels and fuels under development
• Compare reactor performance with HEU and LEU fuels
• Calculate key safety parameters

– Perform the OPERATIONAL AND SAFETY ANALYSES to show:

• Transition from HEU to LEU fuel can be done safely and without interrupting normal
operations
• LEU reactor satisfies all safety requirements.

– Prepare a CONVERSION ANALYSIS REPORT comparing reactor

parameters, lifetime and flux performance, and safety assessment of the
HEU and LEU cores.
– Submit REPORT TO REGULATORY BODY for review and comment.
– Resolve REGULATORY ISSUES
• Answer questions posed by regulatory bodies and their experts regarding the reactor’s
safety documentation.

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 Definitions – Fuel Assembly Status

„ QUALIFIED Fuel Assembly

– Fuel assembly that has been successfully irradiation tested and is licensable from the
point of view of fuel irradiation behavior.

„ AVAILABLE Fuel Assembly

– Fuel assembly that is available from a commercial manufacturer.

„ SUITABLE Fuel Assembly

– Fuel assembly that satisfies criteria for LEU conversion of a specific reactor
• Number of FA used per year is the same as or less than with HEU fuel
• Performance of experiments is not significantly lower than with HEU fuel
• Safety criteria are satisfied.

„ To be ACCEPTABLE for LEU conversion of a specific reactor, a fuel assembly must be qualified,
commercially available, and suitable for use in that reactor, and the reactor operator must agree to
ACCEPT this fuel assembly for conversion.

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Core Conversion Tasks
„ Characterize the Current HEU Core
– Compare measured and calculated reactor parameters
– Compare measured and calculated fluxes in experiment positions.

„ Perform LEU Conversion Feasibility Study

– Compare HEU and LEU cores for several LEU fuel assembly designs.
– Select one LEU fuel assembly design that is qualified, commercially available,
suitable, and acceptable.

„ Review Existing SAR and OLC to Identify Necessary Changes

„ Complete Conversion Safety Analyses

„ Perform Criticality Analyses for Fresh and Spent Fuel Storage

„ Prepare Startup / Commissioning Plan

„ Prepare Documentation Needed to Ship Spent HEU Fuel and

Documentation Needed by the Receiving Site.

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Steps in Preparing Conversion Safety Analyses
„ Collect national regulatory requirements and IAEA guidelines documents on
preparation of Safety Analyses and Operating Limits and Conditions.
„ Review thoroughly the current OLC and the SAR.
– Prepare an outline of all topics in the SAR and the OLC.
– Identify and document in the outline the chapters and sections that will change
and those that will not change.
– The OLC will be the most useful at first.
• Review the definitions.
• Review Safety Limits, Safety System Settings, and their technical bases.
• Review the operating limits and conditions to determine whether they are still applicable
and up-to-date.
– Then review the SAR for sections that need to be revised
• Sections that describe the reactor fuel and reactor parameters
• Section on Accident Analyses

„ Establish a written work plan for the analyses that need to be redone.
„ Consider requesting assistance through the IAEA or the RERTR Program
at ANL.

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Neutronics Analyses (Assuming that an acceptable fuel
assembly design has been determined)

„ The neutronics analyses provide essential input data to the safety

analyses.

„ Neutronics Analyses (examples)

– Excess reactivity
• Must be less than the maximum value allowed in the OLC
• The estimated impurities in the cladding and reflector materials must be included,
especially for low power reactors with less than 1 βeff excess reactivity.

– Shutdown margins, control rod worths, and rod worth profiles.

• Compare measured and calculated values of control rod worths to establish credibility
of the models and methods that are used.
• All shutdown margin requirements in the OLC must be satisfied.

– Power distributions
• Radial and axial power distributions are key data for the safety analyses.
• The control rods should be inserted so that keff ~ 1. The rods cause power peaks that
often define the limiting plate, pin, or tube in the core.

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Additional Neutronics Analyses

Kinetic parameters and reactivity feedback coefficients are needed to

perform the transient analyses.

„ Kinetics parameters
– Prompt neutron lifetime
– Effective delayed neutron fraction

„ Reactivity Temperature Coefficients

– Calculate separately for coolant / moderator temperature, coolant / moderator
density, and fuel temperature for temperature ranges that are appropriate.

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Steady-State Thermal-Hydraulics Analyses

„ Identify the key steady-state thermal-hydraulics safety margins that will be

calculated. These are usually:
– Margin to Onset of Nucleate Boiling (ONB)
– Margin to Onset of Flow Instability
– Margin to Departure from Nucleate Boiling (DNB)
ONB and Flow Instability are most important for fuel assemblies consisting of plates or
tubes with parallel channels. DNB is important for pin-type fuel assemblies.

„ For ONB and Flow Instability, calculate the power level at which each
would occur because it is easy to understand.
„ Calculate the margin to DNB using the DNB correlations.
„ Identify the limiting plate, tube, or pin in the core. In MTR reactors, for
example, the limiting plate is often in a control assembly. Several cases
need to be done to determine which plate, tube, or pin is limiting.

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Steady-State Thermal-Hydraulics Analyses

„ Identify the hot channel factors that will be used.

– Some of them are derived from the fuel manufacturing drawings.
• Minimum coolant channel spacing, for example
– Some of them are stated in the fuel manufacturing specifications.
• Maximum U-235 loading
• Fuel homogeneity
– Some of them are traditional uncertainties (for example 10%).
• Uncertainty in heat transfer coefficient
• Uncertainty in calculated power distribution
„ NOTE
– Hot channel factors are almost always used in analyses of thermal-hydraulic
safety margins for MTR reactors that use plate-type fuels.
– Analyses of reactors with Russian tubular-type fuel assemblies usually do not
include hot channel factors directly in the analyses. Neither do the analyses
for TRIGA reactors.

„ Very key are realistic estimates of the uncertainties in measurements of

reactor power, coolant flow rate, and inlet temperature.

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Example Steady-State Thermal-Hydraulics Analysis
4.0
Assumptions
1. Hot channel factors included
2. Inlet temperature is 44 C
3. Height of pool water is 6.5 m, the mininum allowed
4. Dummy assemblies included
Flow Instability

3.0
Reactor Power, MW

2.0 Onset of Nucleate Boiling

0.2 MW Power Measurement Uncertainty

1.0
Nominal Operating
Point (Measured)
3
3.6 m /min, 1.00 MW
3
0.2 m /min Flow Measurement Uncertainty 3
SSS's (Measured), 3.2 m /min, 1.2 MW

0.0
2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.0

Reactor Coolant Flow Rate, m3/min

Reactor Power at Which Flow Instability Is Calculated to Occur

for a 1 MW MTR Reactor Using Plate-type Fuel Assemblies

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Neutronics, Thermal-Hydraulics, and Transient
Analyses Are Closely Related

„ Uncertainties in measurement of power level, coolant flow rate, and inlet

temperature are key data that are used to define input values for reactivity
insertion transient analyses.
– Uncertainty in power level helps define the “true” value of the Safety System
Setting (or trip setting) on power level that is input to the transient calculation.
– Uncertainty in coolant flow rate helps to define the limiting value of the coolant
flow rate that is input to the calculation.
– Uncertainty in inlet temperature helps to define the limiting value of the
maximum inlet temperature that is input the calculations.

„ Inclusion of these uncertainties are needed in order that the transient

analyses are consistent with all other parts of the SAR and the OLC.

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Transient Analyses
„ Reactivity Insertion Transients
– The OLC define the reactivity insertion transients that need to be done.
• An example is the maximum allowed reactivity worth of the moveable and unsecured
experiments.

– Input values for coolant flow rate and inlet temperature are the limiting
values of these parameters, including the uncertainties.
• If maximum allowed inlet temperature is 43 ± 1 ˚C, input 44 ˚C in the calculation
• If maximum coolant flow rate is 3.2 ± 0.2 m3/min, input 3.0 m3/min in the calculation

– The input value of the trip on power should include uncertainties in power
level measurement.
• If the SSS on power is a measured value of 1.2 MW and the uncertainty in the power level
measurement is 20%, the trip should be set at 1.4 MW in the calculation.

– Example 1: Rapid Reactivity Insertion

• The maximum rapid reactivity insertion is defined by the maximum excess reactivity
allowed in the OLC for the moveable and unsecured experiments
• These should be reasonable values for the experiments that the reactor does.

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Transient Analyses
– Example 2: “Runaway rod” transient (control rods move out of the
core at their maximum withdrawal rate)
• Use rod worth profiles calculated in neutronics analysis and maximum speed of the
rod drives to determine the maximum reactivity insertion rate.
• Check that the maximum reactivity insertion rate specified in the OLC is larger than
the calculated value. Perform the transient analyses for the maximum insertion rate
specified in the OLC.

„ Loss-of-Flow Transients
– Events need to be chosen carefully and realistically, depending on
the type and design of the cooling system.
• Pump coast-down transients
• Pump seizure transients

„ Natural Convection Mode of Operation

– Most reactors are allowed to (or only) operate under natural convection
cooling conditions
• Review OLC for natural convection cooling conditions
• Steady-state thermal-hydraulics analyses and transient analyses also need to be done
for these conditions.

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Design Basis Accident (DBA)

„ The DBA is sometimes referred to as the Maximum Credible Accident (a

good clarifying description) by some regulatory bodies.
„ Refer to IAEA document “Source Term Determination and Radiological
Consequences Analysis of Research Reactor Accidents”, March 2003
– Section 2.2.1 Selection of initiating events and accident sequences

„ Choose this scenario carefully.

• Example 1: It is postulated that by some means one or more fuel plates in the element with
maximum burnup undergoes partial melting while in the pool. It is assumed that melting affects the
equivalent of one fuel plate, resulting in the release of fission products.
• Example 2: The DBA is defined as the loss of integrity of the fuel cladding for one fuel rod and the
simultaneous loss of pool water resulting in fission product release.

– Calculate the source term

• Note that in example 1, fission products are released in the pool. In example 2, fission products are
released in air.
• Different fuel meat materials have different fission product retention capability.

– Radiological consequence calculations are discussed later.

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Beyond Design Basis Accident (BDBA)
„ The BDBA is sometimes referred to as the Maximum Hypothetical
Accident by some regulatory bodies. Note the key word – hypothetical.
„ Choose this scenario carefully.
„ Construct a reasonable story that is consistent with the reactor design, its
location, and the rest of the SAR.
– State that the BDBA scenario is extremely unlikely to occur.
– Do not write several paragraphs or pages describing a core disruption accident.

„ The BDBA usually, but not always, results in release of fission products.
„ The results are needed in formulating Emergency Plans.
„ There are no international standards for postulating or analyzing BDBA
events.
„ Examples
– Postulated Loss-of-Coolant Accidents are frequent BDBA events.
– If there is no melting of fuel, gamma radiation levels in various reactor building locations
are sometimes calculated to provide information for intervention and restoration efforts.

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Radiological Consequence Analyses

„ Review the IAEA document “Source Term Derivation and Radiological

Consequences Analysis of Research Reactor Accidents”, March 2003.
„ Determine the regulatory standards or limits to which calculated results
will be compared.
„ Develop a reasonable story, including site-specific details, about what will
be calculated.
„ Learn how these calculations are done, some of the theory behind the
calculations, and especially the values input to codes.
„ Understand and clearly state all of the assumptions that will be used.
„ Three persons that need to be addressed are:
– Maximum exposed reactor staff person
– Maximum exposed member of the public
– Maximum exposed permanent resident

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Storage of Fresh and Spent Fuel

„ Criticality analyses need to be redone for the new fuel and compared with
the standard specified in the OLC.
– Monte Carlo codes make this task relatively easy.
– Model the geometry of the racks in which the fresh LEU fuel will be stored
when it arrives at the reactor, along with fresh HEU fuel that may be present.
Perform the calculations assuming that the room is flooded with water.
– Model the geometry of the racks in which the irradiated LEU fuel will be stored
when removed from the core.
• Include racks containing irradiated HEU fuel which may be stored in the same pool.
• Credit for U-235 burnup is not normally allowed.
• Include poisons that may be present in the racks.

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LEU Startup / Commissioning Plan

„ Develop a detailed startup plan for how the LEU fuel will be introduced
into the core.
– The models and calculations should simulate what actually intends to be done.
– Plan that the results are useful guides for startup of the real core.
– Perform calculations for several cores approaching critical.
– Determine the critical core and critical control rod positions.
– Calculate the proposed working core with excess reactivity satisfying the OLC.
– Calculate the critical rod positions, shutdown margins, and control rod worth
profiles.

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Shipping and Receiving Site Documentation

„ Extensive documentation of the fuel and its burnup characteristics are

needed both to ship spent fuel and for receipt of spent fuel at the
receiving site.
– Fuel assembly geometrical data
– Fuel assembly material compositions
– Burnup history
– Curie content
– Gamma dose

„ Be aware of the analyses that need to be done.

– These could be time-consuming if good records are not already available.
– Shipping companies and receiving sites can be very demanding because of
the extensive rules and regulations that they need to follow.

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