Concrete and Criticality

摘要

Concrete is a widely used structural material which occurs frequently in systems requiring criticality analyses. Ordinarily, we give little thought to what its actual composition is (as compared to reference compositions), yet in criticality safety, differences in composition can cause large changes in k-effective and it may not be easy to predict in which direction the change will occur. Concrete composition is quite variable with differences in the aggregate used in the concrete in various parts of the country providing relative large differences in k-effective. The water content of concrete can also strongly affect the reactivity of a system in which it acts as a reflector or is interspersed between fissile units. Because concrete is so common and is often (but not always) a better reflector than water, one must know the concrete compositions or be prepared to use a ''worst case'' composition. It may be a problem, however, to determine just what is the worst case. At the Hanford Plant, the aggregate normally used is basalt, which gives a composition very low in carbon as opposed to those areas (e.g., Oak Ridge) where the use of limestone aggregate will result in concrete with a high carbon content. The data presented show some of the effects found in situations using ''Hanford'' concrete, but similar effects might be found with other compositions. In some cases, the use of concrete may be incidental to the effects shown. While the numbers shown are those for actual systems, the primary intent is to alert the reader that these effects can occur. In applying this information, the analyst should use material specific to the systems being analyzed. (ERA citation 03:053274)