Enhanced neutronics systems

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2016321383-A1
Application number	US-201615209300-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jul 13, 2016
Priority date	Nov 18, 2011
Publication date	Nov 3, 2016
Grant date	—

Abstract

Illustrative embodiments provide for the operation and simulation of the operation of fission reactors, including the movement of materials within reactors. Illustrative embodiments and aspects include, without limitation, nuclear fission reactors and reactor modules, including modular nuclear fission reactors and reactor modules, nuclear fission deflagration wave reactors and reactor modules, modular nuclear fission deflagration wave reactors and modules, methods of operating nuclear reactors and modules including the aforementioned, methods of simulating operating nuclear reactors and modules including the aforementioned, and the like.

First claim

1 .- 208 . (canceled)

209 . A computer system, comprising:
at least one processor configured to perform acts of: generating a user interface in response to execution of instructions, the user interface comprising: identifying an input definition of a reactor model including a plurality of defined assemblies represented as a hierarchical data structure; within the user interface, presenting a plurality of simulator modules and permitting a user to selectively choose one or more of the plurality of simulator modules to be simulated; simulating the defined reactor model associated with the input definition including the chosen one or more of the plurality of simulator modules, generating simulation data, wherein the act of simulating the defined reactor model includes calling interfaces of the chosen one or more of the plurality of simulator modules in a predetermined sequence; and presenting an output of the act of simulating the defined reactor model within the user interface, including the generated simulation data.

210 . The computer system according to claim 209 , wherein the act of presenting an output comprises an act of displaying a representation of the simulation data within the modeling interface.

211 . The computer system according to claim 210 , wherein the act of presenting an output comprises an act of displaying a state of the defined reactor model within the modeling interface.

213 . The computer system according to claim 209 , wherein the act of generating a user interface further comprises an act of presenting, within the user interface, a control permitting the user to provide cycle information defining at least a number and length of a cycle to be simulated by the act of simulating.

214 . The computer system according to claim 209 , wherein the plurality of simulator modules comprises a neutronics simulator module, a fuel burn simulator module, a thermal hydraulics simulator module, and a material performance simulator module.

215 . The computer system according to claim 209 , further comprising an act of presenting, within the user interface, a control permitting the user to provide fuel movement information and modifying the reactor model responsive to the provided information.

216 . The computer system according to claim 209 , wherein the act of generating a user interface further comprises an act of providing, within the user interface, a control permitting the user to specify a target k-eff of the simulation.

217 . The computer system according to claim 209 , further comprising an act of storing a data structure defining the reactor model including the plurality of defined assemblies.

218 . The computer system according to claim 217 , further comprising an act of representing, for each of the defined assemblies within the reactor model, a geometry description and location.

219 . The computer system according to claim 209 , wherein the hierarchical data structure includes a nuclear reactor data structure representing a nuclear reactor core, the nuclear reactor data structure including a plurality of assembly structures, each assembly structure representative of a physical component that is present in the nuclear reactor model, two or more of the assembly data structures representing fuel assemblies of the nuclear reactor core, each fuel assembly data structure including a plurality of block data structures representative of axially distributed blocks of the fuel assembly of the nuclear reactor core, at least one block structure of the plurality of block structures of the fuel assembly structure includes material data and location, the material and location data representative of fuel pin material and location within the fuel assembly of the nuclear reactor core.

220 . The computer system according to claim 219 , wherein the at least one processor is adapted to convert the input definition of a reactor model to nuclear reactor modeling data defining a nuclear reactor model modelling the nuclear reactor core, the nuclear reactor modeling data including:
a plurality of cell data for a plurality of cells of the nuclear reactor model, each cell defined by one or both of bounding of surfaces and regions of space, each cell data including a physical location, a material identifier, and a geometry of the associated cell of the nuclear reactor model; nuclear reactor performance data including fuel cell swelling and fuel depletion; and nuclear material data including cycle load data.

221 . The system according to claim 209 , wherein the act of generating a user interface further comprises an act of presenting, within the user interface, a visual representation of the reactor model including the plurality of defined assemblies.

222 . The system according to claim 221 , wherein the act of presenting, within the user interface, the visual representation of the reactor model including the plurality of defined assemblies further comprises and act of displaying the plurality of defined assemblies as a collection of components within the user interface.

223 . The system according to claim 222 , wherein the collection of components are adapted indicate, to the user within the user interface, simulation data relating to each one of the plurality of defined assemblies.

224 . The system according to claim 222 , wherein the collection of components within the user interface are selectable by a user to view information relating to a series of block structures relating to a particular one of the plurality of defined assemblies.

225 . The system according to claim 224 , wherein the series of block structures each include information identifying a state of material within the particular one of the plurality of defined assemblies.

Assignees

• Terrapower Llc

Inventors

• Cheatham Iii Jesse R
• Petroski Robert C
• Touran Nicholas W
• Whitmer Charles

Classifications

• G06F30/20 Primary

  Design optimisation, verification or simulation (optimisation, verification or simulation of circuit designs G06F30/30) · CPC title

• G21D3/001 Primary

  Computer implemented control · CPC title

• G21D3/002

  Core design; core simulations; core optimisation · CPC title

• G06F2111/10

  Numerical modelling · CPC title

• G21D3/005

  Thermo-hydraulic simulations · CPC title