A denatured (U-233/Th)O/sub 2/ fuel assembly has been designed which is energy equivalent to and hardware interchangeable with a modern boiling water reactor (BWR) reference reload assembly. Relative to the reference UO/sub 2/ fuel, the thorium fuel design shows better performance during normal and transient reactor operation for the BWR/6 product line and will meet or exceed current safety and licensing criteria. Power distributions are flattened and thermal operating margins are increased by reduced steam void reactivity coefficients caused by U-233. However, a (U-233/Th)O/sub 2/-fueled BWR will likely have reduced operating flexibility. A (U-235/Th)O/sub 2/-fueled BWR should perform similar to …
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A denatured (U-233/Th)O/sub 2/ fuel assembly has been designed which is energy equivalent to and hardware interchangeable with a modern boiling water reactor (BWR) reference reload assembly. Relative to the reference UO/sub 2/ fuel, the thorium fuel design shows better performance during normal and transient reactor operation for the BWR/6 product line and will meet or exceed current safety and licensing criteria. Power distributions are flattened and thermal operating margins are increased by reduced steam void reactivity coefficients caused by U-233. However, a (U-233/Th)O/sub 2/-fueled BWR will likely have reduced operating flexibility. A (U-235/Th)O/sub 2/-fueled BWR should perform similar to a UO/sub 2/-fueled BWR under all operating conditions. A (Pu/Th)O/sub 2/-fueled BWR may have reduced thermal margins and similar accident response and be less stable than a UO/sub 2/-fueled BWR. The assessment is based on comparisions of point model and infinite lattice predictions of various nuclear reactivity parameters, including void reactivity coefficients, Doppler reactivity coefficients, and control blade worths.
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Colby, M.J.; Townsend, D.B. & Kunz, C.L.Safety analysis of thorium-based fuels in the General Electric Standard BWR,
report,
June 1, 1980;
United States.
(https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc1066727/:
accessed June 6, 2024),
University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu;
crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.
