Benchmark Evaluation of HTR-PROTEUS Absorber Rod Worths (Cores 5 through 8)

摘要

PROTEUS was a zero-power research reactor at the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) in Switzerland. The critical assembly was constructed from a large graphite annular reflector surrounding the central cylindrical core cavity. Various experimental programs were investigated in PROTEUS; during the years 1992 through 1996, it was configured as a pebble-bed reactor and designated HTR-PROTEUS. Various critical configurations were assembled with each accompanied by an assortment of reactor physics experiments including differential and integral absorber rod measurements, kinetics, reaction rate distributions, water ingress effects, and small sample reactivity effects. Four benchmark reports were previously prepared and included in the International Handbook of Evaluated Reactor Physics Benchmark Experiments (IRPhEP Handbook) evaluating eleven critical configurations. A summary of that effort is available and includes analysis of absorber rod worth measurements for Cores 4, 9, and 10. In the current benchmark effort, absorber rod worths measured for Core Configuration 5 through 8 have been evaluated for inclusion as a revision to the HTR-PROTEUS benchmark report PROTEUS-GCR-EXP-003.