Two papers co-authored by Studsvik engineers received Best Paper awards at the 2010 LWR Fuel Performance Meeting (TOPFUEL) in Orlando, FL.
Analysis of the Pin Power Peaking of the Hatch Unit 1 Cycle 21 Failed Fuel Assemblies by Mehdi Asgari, et al., summarized the results of the analyses of local pin power peaking of the failed fuel assemblies, due to pellet clad interaction (PCI), in Hatch Unit 1 Cycle 21. These analyses were performed with the latest Studsvik Scandpower’s next-generation lattice and nodal codes, CASMO-5 and SIMULATE-5. The advanced neutronics and thermal hydraulic models of CASMO-5 and SIMULATE-5 were shown to have a significant impact on the local pin-power peaking peaking of assemblies in cells with skewed power and void profiles.
Advanced Checkmate Design for BWR Fuel Management, by Magnus Kruners, et al., presented a unique BWR core loading strategy that outperforms standard checkerboard loading. The Advanced Checkmate Core Design (ACCD) differs from traditional “checkerboard” loaded cores by arranging fresh fuel bundles in cruciform sub-patterns distributed around the core. For a currently operating BWR, these improvements over a traditional checkerboard loading translate into +10 EFPD in energy, +5% MFLCPR/MFLPD, and +0.1% SDM (reactivity margin) in a single cycle or a reduction in fuel cycle cost of 0.3% - 1.7% in transition as well as in equilibrium cycles.
These awards exemplify Studsvik’s commitment to producing state-of-the-art neutronic methods and industry-leading engineering analysis.
Congratulations to Mehdi and Magnus for their fine work!
