A useful observable for estimating keff in fast subcritical systems

Paolo Saracco; Walter Borreani; Davide Chersola; Guglielmo Lomonaco; Gianni Ricco; Marco Ripani

doi:10.1051/epjconf/201715305017

Proceedings

Open Access

EPJ Web of Conferences 153, 05017 (2017)
https://doi.org/10.1051/epjconf/201715305017

A useful observable for estimating k_eff in fast subcritical systems

Paolo Saracco¹^,2^*, Walter Borreani¹^,2^**, Davide Chersola¹^,2^***, Guglielmo Lomonaco¹^,2^****, Gianni Ricco¹^,3^† and Marco Ripani¹^,3^‡

¹ INFN - sez. Genova, Via Dodecaneso, 33 - 16146 Genova ( Italy )
² GeNERG - DIME/TEC - University of Genova, Via all’Opera Pia, 15/A - 16145 Genova ( Italy )
³ CENTRO FERMI, Compendio del Viminale, Piazza del Viminale 1, 00184 Rome, Italy

^* e-mail: paolo.saracco@ge.infn.it
^** e-mail: walter.borreani@unige.it
^*** e-mail: davide.chersola@edu.unige.it
^**** e-mail: guglielmo.lomonaco@unige.it
^† e-mail: ricco@ge.infn.it
^‡ e-mail: ripani@ge.infn.it

Published online: 25 September 2017

Abstract

The neutron multiplication factor k_eff is a key quantity to characterize subcritical neutron multiplying devices and for understanting their physical behaviour, being related to the fundamental eigenvalue of Boltzmann transport equation. Both the maximum available power - and all quantities related to it, like, e.g. the effectiveness in burning nuclear wastes - as well as reactor kinetics and dynamics depend on k_eff. Nevertheless, k_eff is not directly measurable and its determination results from the solution of an inverse problem: minimizing model dependence of the solution for k_eff then becomes a critical issue, relevant both for practical and theoretical reasons.

© The Authors, published by EDP Sciences, 2017

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