3. DESCRIPTION
Archive of 3 Volumes of documentation concerning the SCK/CEN-Belgonucleaire VENUS critical experiments and the results obtained from the "Plutonium Recycling Physics Project".
The fuel stock for the VENUS facility consisted of 2 800 fuel rods divided into 7 different types of chemical composition (UO2, UO2-PuO2, U2-Gd2O3) and 3 different types of fabrication (pellets, homogenous and heterogeneous vibrated oxides). It also included an additional 6 600 pellets of 8 different kinds used either separately or in fuel rods capable of disassembly.
Criticality was achieved in approximately 100 different reactor core configurations. Experiments included, among others:
- 100 measurements of k-eff;
- 200 irradiations;
- 4 000 gamma-scans of fuel rods;
- 120 measurements of reactivity;
- 500 measurements of fine structure.
The first volume (notes PRP/EX/N 61 and 77) contains the basic data relating to the fuels used in the VENUS critical experiments. These data represent the latest knowledge available about these fuels (end 1974). They have been updated to the times of the experiments by taking account of the Pu-241 decay rate.
The second volume contains all the experimental results obtained for configurations No. 1 and 27.
The third volume contains a few notes on measurement campaigns relating to specific problems.
The configurations and experiments have the following characteristics:
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PRP/EX/N| TITLE | SUBJECT
--------|---------------------|---------------------------------
61 | Basic data relating | Atomic mass calculation method
| to the fuels |
77 | Basic fuel of VENUS | basic data with calculation of
| Configurations | the Pu-241 decay rate
29 | configuration No. 1 | 4/0 fuel, cylindrical
33 | configuration No. 2 | 4/0 fuel, rectangular
34 | configuration No. 3 | 3/1 fuel, cylindrical
37 | configuration No. 4 | 3/1 fuel, rectangular
35 | configuration Nos 5 | 3/1 fuel, cylindrical and
| & 6 | rectangular
36 | configuration No. 7 | 3/1 fuel, cylindrical and square
40 | configuration No. 8 | 4/0 fuel, rectangular with
| | Disturbances
54 | configuration No. 8a| 4/0 fuel, cylindrical
41 | Supplementary radial| Radial buckling in
| power distributions | configurations Nos 1 to 8
44 | power distribution | Power sharing measurement
| on either side of |
| two different fuel |
| regions |
52 | configurationNo. 9 | Boundary between 3/1 and 4/0
| | fuels, disturbances and fine
| | structures
45 | configuration No. 10| 3/1 fuel, rectangular geometry
| | with disturbances
51 | configuration No. 11| Homogeneous 2/2.7 fuel, square
55 | configuration No. 12| Heterogeneous 2/2.7 fuel, square
72 | configuration No. 13| Boundary between 2/2.7 and 4/0
| (Addendum) | fuels, with fine structures
73 | configuration No. 14| Simplified simulation of a SENA
| | fuel assembly (Pu island)
56 | configuration No. 15| Homogenous 2/2.7 fuel, square
| | geometry disturbed by a water
| | cross
50 | configuration No. 16| 4/0 fuel, with B4C, sub-critical
| | Experiments
58 | configuration No. 17| 4/0 fuel, rectangular geometry,
| (Addendum) | substitutions of 2/2.8, 0.7/5
| | and 0.7/4.3 fuels
57 | configuration No. 18| 2/2.7 fuel, rectangular geometry
| | with disturbances
60 | configuration No. 19| Simulation of Dodewaard fuel
| configuration No. 20| assemblies (Pu island)
| | Simulation of Garigliano fuel
| | assemblies (Pu island)
64 | configuration No. 21| 4/0 and 2/2.7 fuels, cylindrical
| | and rectangular geometries,
| | moderator poisoned with boric
62 | Pulsed measurements | 4/0 and 2/2.7 fuels, cylindrical
| in the sub-critical | and rectangular geometries,
| boron-poisoned VENUS| moderator poisoned with boric
| reactor | acid
3 | configuration No. 22| Simulation of type G, BR3/third
| | core fuel assemblies
65 | Determination of | 4/0 fuel, with B4C
| some critical masses| (configurations 1, 8a and 23)
| to supplement the |
| sub-critical |
| experiments |
68 | configuration No. 24| 4/0 and 2/2.7 fuels, square
| | geometry with RCC configurations
| | (B4C, Ag, In, Cd and pyrex)
71 | configuration No. 25| Detailed simulation of a SENA
| | fuel assembly (Pu island)
70 | configuration No. 26| 4/0 fuel, square geometry with
| | RCC configurations (B4C, Ag, In,
| | Cd and pyrex) and moderator
| | poisoned with boric acid
74 | configuration No. 27| 4/0 fuel, square geometry, Al
| | microrods in moderator, with
| | SENA type assembly Pu island.
| | Densification effect in Pu
| | island.
79/M | configuration No. 28| Detailed simulation of a "go"
| | type fuel assembly with U, Pu
| | and Gd (BR3/No. 4)
78/M | Experimental study | Basic programme for Gd rods in
| of fuel rods | 4/0 and 2/2.7 fuel
| containing Gd |
76 | Aeroball irradiation| Study of use of the aeroball
| programme in | system to detect axial gaps
| configuration No. 27|
69 | Detailed | Fine structure of the flux near
| experimental study | to and within absorber rods
| of absorber rods | (B4C, Ag, In, Cd)
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The primary Documents have been assembled in this package within the IRPhE Project (International Reactor Physics Benchmark Experiments Project) of the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency.
Configurations 7, 9 and 17 have been chosen for further evaluation and inclusion in the IRPhE (International Reactor Physics Experiment Evaluation) project.
This information was released through SCK/CEN in agreement with BN (P. D'hondt) and is made available to international programmes through OECD/NEA.
