Effect of Deformation on the Temperature Regime in Fast-Reactor Cores

Abstract

The results of an analysis of the deformation of the FA in sodium-cooled fast reactors and its effect on the temperature regime in the core of an operating reactor are reported. A change in the geometry of the core (FA jackets, fuel rod bundles, fuel rods, and others), which has a complex character and can occur in a wide range of parameters, has a considerable effect on the temperature regime in the core. A significant factor in the formation of the temperature field in FA is interchannel exchange, which effectively smoothes the local non-uniformity of the coolant temperature in FA. The thermophysical validation of the operating regimes of the FA in the core of a fast reactor in the course of a run must be performed taking account of the impact of different factors, including the deformation of FA.