Uncertainties and Biases Arising from Methods Approximations: The Calculation of Reaction Rates in the PCA 8/7 Configuration

摘要

In the determination of the energy spectrum of the neutron fluxes at the surveillance and 1/4 T positions of LWRs by analyzing measured reaction rates, a calculation of these fluxes is both useful and informative in guiding the unfolding, regardless of the particular unfolding procedure used. It should thus be an important part of any unfolding procedure to be able to calculate not only the fluxes but also to estimate both the corrections to this calculation arising from various methods approximations and the uncertainties in these corrections. In at least one unfolding procedure, that utilizing a generalized least squares technique, knowledge of all uncertainties including those arising from calculational methods approximations is an essential part of the input. The particular problem addressed in this paper is the estimation of some correction factors (i.e., biases or bias factors) and their uncertainties arising from various approximations used in calculating the fluxes and reaction rates in the Pool Critical Assembly (PCA) at Oak Ridge for the 8/7 configuration. In addition, the uncertainties in the calculated fluxes and reaction rates arising as the result of uncertainties in the non-nuclear data input was investigated. (ERA citation 05:003002)