Flux Synthesis for the on-Line Surveillance of Nuclear Power Plants

摘要

This summary briefly describes the development of a calculational method suitable for on-line reactivity and power distribution monitoring (RPDM). Underlying the development of this calculational method is the expansion of the neutron flux in a complete set of eigenfunctions corresponding to the buckling eigenvalues of a Helmoltz equation. Expansions in such eigenfunctions have previously been used for solving reactor kinetics problems, and for analyzing reactivity and flux effects induced by random dispersal of materials in a nuclear reactor. For comparable accuracy, Yamada reported that the use of such eigenfunction expansions improved computational efficiency as compared to finite difference methods. Note the important fact that the set of eigenfunctions of the Helmholtz equation is complete (and thus constitutes a basis) whereas the set of eigenfunctions associated with the k-eigenvalues is not complete. (ERA citation 10:016153)