APOLLO3 homogenization techniques for transport core calculations—application to the ASTRID CFV core

Abstract

This paper presents a comparison of homogenization techniques implemented in the APOLLO3 platform for transport core calculations: standard scalar flux weighting and new flux–moment homogenization, in different combinations with (or without) leakage models. Besides the historical B1-homogeneous model, a new B-heterogeneous one has indeed been implemented recently in the two/three-dimensional-transport solver using the method of characteristics. First analyses have been performed on a very simple Sodium Fast Reactor core with a regular hexagonal lattice. They show that using the heterogeneous leakage model in association with flux-moment homogenization strongly improves the prediction of keff and void reactivity effects. These good results are confirmed when the application is done to the fissile assemblies of the more complex CFV (Low Void Effect) core of the ASTRID (Advanced Sodium Technological Reactor for Industrial Demonstration) project of sodium-cooled fast breeder reactor (Generation IV).

Keywords

• Homogenization
• Flux moments weighting
• Heterogeneous leakage
• APOLLO3