Search NASA⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search NASA

Results for “Isotope Program”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 721 records · Page 40

Final Summary of Research Report to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration Origins of Solar Systems Program

The chondrites are aggregates of components (e.g. chondrules, chondrule rims and matrix) that formed in the nebula but, at present, there is no consensus on how any of these components formed or whether their formation produced or post dated the chemical fractionations between the chondrites. Chondrites are, at present, the most primitive Solar System objects available for laboratory study and the conditions under which their principle components formed would provide the most direct constraints for models of nebula formation and evolution. The conditions under which chondrules formed is of particular importance because, if their relative abundance in chondrites approximates that in the nebula, they are the products of one of the most energetic and pervasive processes that operated in the early Solar System. The goal of this proposal was to combine theoretical modeling with a comprehensive study of the elemental and isotopic compositions of the major components in unequilibrated ordinary chondrites (UOCs), with the aim of determining the conditions in the nebula at the time of their formation. The isotopes of volatile and moderately volatile elements should be particularly revealing of conditions during chondrule formation, as evaporation under most conditions would lead to isotopic mass fractionation. Modeling of chondrule and matrix formation requires the development of a kinetic model of evaporation and condensation, and calibration of this model against experiments. Cosmic spherules present an opportunity to test our evaporation models under flash heating conditions that would be difficult to simulate experimentally. However, there is surprisingly little known about the isotopic compositions of silicate cosmic spherules, and a number of questions need to be addressed. Is the range of compositions they exhibit due to evaporation? If they are, are the relative volatilities consistent with the models/experiments and are the isotopic fractionations consistent with Rayleigh conditions? For instance, do the alkalis and S evaporate prior to significant melting so that conditions did not meet the Rayleigh criteria of rapid diffusion? If so, their isotopic fractionation might be considerably suppressed. Could this mechanism of K loss apply to chondrule formation? The Fe isotopic fractionation during evaporation of silicates has not been measured, so cosmic spherules might provide a clue to whether FeO diffusion is fast enough to maintain Rayleigh conditions during evaporation. And so on.

O'D. Alexander, Conel↗

As-Built Simulation of the High Flux Isotope Reactor

The Oak Ridge National Laboratory High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) is an 85 MWt flux trap-type research reactor that supports key research missions, including isotope production, materials irradiation, and neutron scattering. The core consists of an inner and an outer fuel element containing 171 and 369 involute-shaped plates, respectively. The thin fuel plates consist of a U 3 O 8 -Al dispersion fuel (highly enriched), an aluminum-based filler, and aluminum cladding. The fuel meat thickness is varied across the width of the involute plate to reduce thermal flux peaks at the radial edges of the fuel elements. Some deviation from the designed fuel meat shaping is allowed during manufacturing. A homogeneity scan of each fuel plate checks for potential anomalies in the fuel distribution by scanning the surface of the plate and comparing the attenuation of the beam to calibration standards. While typical HFIR simulations use homogenized fuel regions, explicit models of the plates were developed under the Low-Enriched Uranium Conversion Program. These explicit models typically include one inner and one outer fuel plate with nominal fuel distributions, and then the plates are duplicated to fill the space of the corresponding fuel element. Therefore, data extracted from these simulations are limited to azimuthally averaged quantities. To determine the reactivity and physics impacts of an as-built outer fuel element and generate azimuthally dependent data in the element, 369 unique fuel plate models were generated and positioned. This model generates the three-dimensional (i.e., radial–axial–azimuthal) plate power profile, where the azimuthal profile is impacted by features within the adjacent control element region and beryllium reflector. For an as-built model of the outer fuel element, plate-specific homogeneity data, 235 U loading, enrichment, and channel thickness measurements were translated into the model, yielding a much more varied azimuthal power profile encompassed by uncertainty factors in analyses. These models were run with the ORNL-TN and Shift Monte Carlo tools, and they contained upwards of 500,000 cells and 100,000 unique tallies.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗

The Dynamics and Thermodynamics of Gaseous Molecule-Ions. Final report

The overall objectives of this research effort were to expand the capabilities of spectroscopic and ion chemistry tools for the structural characterization of polyatomic ions of relevance to the broad mission of the Department of Energy. Mass spectrometry currently plays an important role in virtually all of the molecular sciences by virtue of the value of the accurate measurement of mass and the structural information that can be derived from various structural probes based on, for example, ion chemistry, ion mobility, and ion spectroscopy. Mass spectrometry has long played important roles in supporting the missions of the Department of Energy and its predecessor agencies, particularly in the area of isotopic analysis of nuclides. Molecular mass spectrometry has played increasingly important roles is many aspects of the production and use of energy as the nation has diversified its energy portfolio. There is an ongoing need for the expansion of the measurement capabilities associated with molecular mass spectrometry that involves both technological developments as well as improved understanding of the chemical and physical processes that take place upon ionization and ion analysis in a mass spectrometer. Advances in mass spectrometry have impacted science broadly and further advances will be required to meet the needs of current energy and environmental research. This program has historically focused on the structural characterization of polyatomic ions, usually within the context of a tandem mass spectrometry experiment. A wide variety of physical and chemical processes can take place within a mass spectrometer and advantage can be taken of such processes to enhance the quality and quantity of information that can be derived for a given chemical system of interest. For example, ions can undergo interactions with neutral molecules/atoms, light, surfaces, electrons, or oppositely charged ions. The outcomes of all such interactions can be sensitive to the structures of the ions and are therefore candidates for probes of ion structure. This program has historically focused on the chemistry and physics associated with ion/neutral interactions at both low and high translational energies, and ion/ion reactions. The former area has involved the study of ion/molecule reactions at thermal energies and the extensive study of collisional activation under a wide variety of conditions. A major area of emphasis has been collisional activation in electrodynamic ion traps. The study of gas-phase ion/ion reactions within the context of tandem mass spectrometry was initiated in this program and has grown to be a major research area in this group. Most of the focus in ion/ion chemistry has been on proton transfer and electron transfer reactions and some of the work in the previous budget period was directed, in particular, to fundamental aspects of electron transfer. Recently, the discovery of selective covalent ion/ion reactions has opened up new vistas for research that will expand significantly the capabilities of tandem mass spectrometry for the structural characterization of polyatomic ions.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Molecules in Cool Stars: The A 2 Π − X 2 Σ + and the B 2 Σ + − X 2 Σ + Band Systems of CaCl

Cool red giant stars exhibit absorption bands of calcium monochloride (CaCl) in the optical region. In this work, the bands of CaCl corresponding to the A 2 Π − X 2 Σ + transition with v' ≤ 4 and v'' ≤ 4, and B 2 Σ + − X 2 Σ + transition with v' ≤ 2 and v'' ≤ 2 are rotationally analyzed with PGOPHER, a multipurpose program for simulating and fitting molecular spectra. All bands were analyzed using high-resolution absorption spectra collected at the National Solar Observatory in 1985, calibrated with atomic lines from a high-resolution emission spectrum obtained in a separate hollow cathode experiment. The results are compared with previous laser-induced fluorescence measurements. Overall, the accuracy of spectroscopic constants for the A2Π and B2Σ+ states is improved. Scaled transition dipole moment calculations were used to obtain line strengths. Line lists are provided with Einstein A coefficients and oscillator strengths, which can be used to determine CaCl stellar abundances. Additionally, isotope splittings allowed us to estimate band origins for the 40 Ca 37 Cl isotopologue based on band-head positions.

Léo Lavy↗

Recent 238 Pu Production Activities at Idaho National Laboratory

The Plutonium-238 ( 238 Pu) Production program at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) is actively qualifying irradiation targets containing 237 Np for the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) to produce 238 Pu for future National Aeronautics and Space Administration missions. INL qualified and loaded seven targets in the ATR’s south flux trap for cycle 169A, which occurred in Spring 2021. The irradiation qualification program has expanded to additional ATR irradiation positions after two baseline production targets in three positions validated significant production of 238 Pu. The validation model was followed by the PFS-1 experimental test in the ATR Critical Facility that verified 238 Pu production cross sections. This paper outlines the progress and status of the 238 Pu production program at INL. The qualification effort, safety analysis, hardware status, and future activities for qualification of an updated target design for use in the ATR are discussed.

07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES↗

Analysis of a Bulk 237 Np Oxide Sample for Trace Actinides

A neptunium oxide sample was dissolved and trace actinide constituents were measured by isotope dilution ICP-MS (for 239–244 Pu, 233–238 U, 237 Np, 241–243 Am) and alpha spectrometry ( 238 Pu, 242 Cm, 244 Cm). This material contained significant quantities of transuranic elements, notably americium and curium. The isotopic composition of the material will continue to evolve over time due to radioactive decay; the measurements reported here include all isotopes decay corrected to a reference date of 1/1/2022. These factors may be considerations in criticality studies of the related 237 Np sphere.

38 RADIATION CHEMISTRY, RADIOCHEMISTRY, AND NUCLEA↗

Benchmark for Fuel Shuffling and Depletion for Pebble-Bed Reactors

Pebble bed reactors have specific operational characteristics when their fuel-cycle and fueling operations are considered. They are specifically distinguished by other type of nuclear reactor designs by their online fuel recycling scheme, where the fuel elements that have not yet reached discharge burnup can be reloaded and recycled continuously during normal operation. The fuel in a pebble bed reactor is not stationary and stochastically moves through the core once or several times during its lifetime, which allows them to operate without requiring a large excess reactivity hold for the burnup. However, this characteristic of pebble bed reactors introduces challenges in simulation, as each pebble can take many different trajectories through the core, its composition depends on the details of the irradiation history that is unique to its aggregated path through the core. For predicting the safety performance characteristics, such as source term, maximum fuel temperatures and fuel failure rates, etc., it is important to accurately incorporate the movement of pebbles through the core during their lifetime in a multi-physics simulation together with other phenomena. The equilibrium core analysis for pebble bed reactors are performed with multi-physics tools including fuel depletion in a multi pass reload coupled to the fuel movement. Currently, there are only a few legacy multi-physics simulation tools that can implement the pebble flow characteristics and perform equilibrium core analysis for pebble bed reactors. However, there are development efforts on-going under Department of Energy's Nuclear Energy Advanced Modelling and Simulation program and also in private industry for including these capabilities into their modelling and simulation tools. Any new development in the modelling and simulation tools needs to be validated by using tools such as experiments, analytical solutions or code-to-code benchmarks. In this work, a code-to-code benchmark for the equilibrium core analysis capability of pebble bed reactors was developed. Multiple cases were identified to capture different fuel cycle strategies that can be used in PBRs. The results of each case are presented in terms of overall equilibrium core characteristics: the discharge burnup; spatial burnup distribution; spatial isotopic distributions; axial and radial neutron flux distributions and power history of fuel elements per pass through the core for both a prototypical pebble bed High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor and a prototypical pebble bed Fluoride-salt cooled High temperature Reactor.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

Computational Tool for Cosmic Ray Flux and Cosmogenic Activation Production Rates

Silicon charge couple devices (CCDs) are used in direct detection dark matter searches. Silicon can be obtained with very high purity and negligible amounts of radioactive contaminants. However, silicon exposed to cosmic rays can be activated, leading to the buildup of radioactive isotopes such as tritium. The decay of tritium can produce signals that cannot be distinguished from the expected signals of dark matter interactions and tritium produced by cosmic rays is expected as one of the leading sources of background for next-generation experiments. The cosmic ray flux depends on variables such as geomagnetic latitude and longitude, atmospheric depth/altitude, solar activity, and surrounding environment for example. The goal of this work is to create a tool that will evaluate the total cosmic ray exposure and related tritium production rate for any given exposure history of a silicon detector. EXcel-based Program for calculation Atmospheric Cosmic-ray Spectrum (EXPACS) was used to obtain the cosmic ray fluxes. We have worked on creating a 3-dimensional gird that spans latitude, longitude, and altitude, and can be used to interpolate the cosmic ray flux at any given location. This computation tool additionally has use for work requiring knowledge of the cosmic ray flux at multiple locations.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Isotope Brayton electric power system for the 500 to 2500 watt range.

An extensive study was conducted at the Lewis Research Center to evaluate an isotope Brayton electric power system for use in the 500 to 2500 W power range. The study emphasized overall system simplicity in order to reduce parasitic power losses and improve system reliability. The study included detailed parametric cycle analysis, conceptual component designs, and evaluation of system packaging. The study has resulted in the selection of a single-loop system (gas) with six major components including one rotating unit. Calculated net system efficiency varies from 23 to 28% over the power range. The use of the Pu-238 heat source being developed for the Multi-Hundred-Watt Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator program was assumed.

Macosko, R. P.↗

Thermal Hydraulics Safety Analyses of TRIGA Reactor Upon Fuel Reconfiguration

Safety analyses of the Training, Research, Isotope, General Atomics (TRIGA) reactor at Kansas State University(KSU) is performed using thermal hydraulic simulations based on changes to reactivity or the volumetric heat generation rate due to changes in the positioning of the enriched fuel elements in the reactor core. If the reactivity or neutronics parameters are known, then they can be used to simulate the thermal energy state of the material which is crucial to assess the safety of the nuclear fuel inside a nuclear reactor. Several thermal hydraulics models and codes have been developed in the past to assess reactor safety. RELAP (Reactor Excursion and Leak Analysis Program) is one such tool widely used throughout the world for safety analyses. Although RELAP is considered a reliable tool by regulators, vendors, and operators, it lacks the numerical fidelity provided by 3-D computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models. This work involves the critical task of assessing safety of a research reactor upon fuel reconfiguration based on models developed in RELAP and comparing them with a commercially available 3-D CFD program. The TRIGA Mark-II reactor, designed by General Atomics and located at Kansas State University, is a class of small pool type inherently safe research reactor licensed to operate at steady state power of up to 1.25 MW. It has a cylindrical core measuring 0.45 meters diametrically and 0.38 meters axially positioned in a tank measuring 1.98 meters diametrically and 6.25 meters axially. It has uranium zirconium hydride (UZrH) fuel rods housed in stainless steel cladding material arranged in five concentric rings (B,C,D,E and F rings, in that order, moving outwards from the center). TRIGA fuel is nominally 20% enriched, but the reactivity of the fuel can be changed by using burnable poisons (not used at KSU), or by varying the total weight percent of uranium in the UZrH fuel meat. The TRIGA reactor is designed to be an inherently safe reactor and is designed to be cooled by natural convection. Thus it is of paramount importance to avoid the film boiling regime; failing to do so will subject the fuel to severe conditions, possibly resulting in its failure due to fuel/clad interactions. A high DNBR ratio is a primary consideration in the reactor core design and thus any modification in the core should ensure that this criteria is always met. In order to fully utilize the capabilities of KSU TRIGA reactor facility, it should be operated at its full capacity, i.e. 1.25 MW, which requires increasing the fuel loading in some of the E- and F-ring elements from 8.5% U (nominal) to 12.0% U (nominal). Only four elements are to be switched to 12% loading, causing local power peaking in these elements. The degree of power peaking to be expected in these 12%-loaded fuel elements was calculated based on a detailed MCNP (Monte Carlo N-Particle code) model of the reactor core. Some preliminary results of the calculations are presented in this paper based on changes in peaking factors and power levels. To predict reactor thermal behavior, axial changes in the peaking factors obtained from MCNP models were used to calculate volumetric energy density functions for a single channel one dimensional RELAP model and a three dimensional COMSOL model of the TRIGA MARK-II reactor. (authors)

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

Progress in the U.S./Japan PHENIX Project for the Technological Assessment of Plasma Facing Components for DEMO Reactors

The PHENIX Project is a 6-year U.S./Japan bilateral, multi-institutional collaboration program for the Technological Assessment of Plasma Facing Components for DEMO Reactors. The goal is to address the technical feasibility of helium-cooled divertor concepts using tungsten as the armor material in fusion power reactors. The project specifically attempts to (1) improve heat transfer modeling for helium-cooled divertor systems through experiments including steady-state and pulsed high-heat-load testing, (2) understand the thermomechanical properties of tungsten metals and alloys under divertor-relevant neutron irradiation conditions, and (3) determine the behavior of tritium in tungsten materials through high-flux plasma exposure experiments. The High Flux Isotope Reactor and the Plasma Arc Lamp facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the Tritium Plasma Experiment facility at Idaho National Laboratory, and the helium loop at Georgia Institute of Technology are utilized for evaluation of the response to high heat loads and tritium interactions of irradiated and unirradiated materials and components. This paper provides an overview of the progress achieved during the first 3 years and discusses the plan for the remainder of the project.

Kato, Yutai↗

Building Assessment of Radon Reduction Interventions with Energy Retrofits Expansion (The BEX Study): Final Report

This report presents the findings from a study that was performed to assess whether current precautionary measures used by the US Department of Energy Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) are effective for preventing indoor radon increases following weatherization. The study results show that current practices have produced substantial benefit compared to previous practices, and that there are no statistically significant changes in indoor radon levels on the lowest living levels with these practices following weatherization.

07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES↗

Adaptive-in-temperature method for fast on-the-fly sampling of thermal neutron scattering data in MCNP6 [Slides]

The project objective and motivation is to develop thermal data libraries for selected isotopes in MCNP6 to support on-the-fly S(alpha, beta) sampling for temperature ranges applicable to nuclear criticality safety, thereby enhancing the physics treatment in MCNP6 so that it can perform fast on-the-fly sampling of S(alpha, beta) data at arbitrary temperature.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

UCO TRISO Minifuel FY23 NSUF-Kairos Power Post-Irradiation Examination Status Report

Irradiation of miniature tristructural isotropic (TRISO)–coated particle fuel compacts at high-power particle was performed in the Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s (ORNL’s) High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) using the MiniFuel irradiation capability. Each compact comprised 20 TRISO particles with a low-enriched uranium carbide uranium oxide (UCO), natural UCO, or low-enriched UO 2 kernel within a graphitic matrix. After irradiation, the MiniFuel targets and subcapsules were disassembled to recover the irradiated fuel specimens and pursue post-irradiation examination (PIE) to inform Kairos Power on the fuel specimen performance. This report describes the PIE results collected to date, including dilatometry on the passive thermometry to confirm the irradiation temperature, fission gas release measurements, and gamma counting. This work was funded by the Nuclear Science User Facilities program.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

The Galileo probe mass spectrometer: composition of Jupiter's atmosphere

The composition of the jovian atmosphere from 0.5 to 21 bars along the descent trajectory was determined by a quadrupole mass spectrometer on the Galileo probe. The mixing ratio of He (helium) to H2 (hydrogen), 0.156, is close to the solar ratio. The abundances of methane, water, argon, neon, and hydrogen sulfide were measured; krypton and xenon were detected. As measured in the jovian atmosphere, the amount of carbon is 2.9 times the solar abundance relative to H2, the amount of sulfur is greater than the solar abundance, and the amount of oxygen is much less than the solar abundance. The neon abundance compared with that of hydrogen is about an order of magnitude less than the solar abundance. Isotopic ratios of carbon and the noble gases are consistent with solar values. The measured ratio of deuterium to hydrogen (D/H) of (5 +/- 2) x 10(-5) indicates that this ratio is greater in solar-system hydrogen than in local interstellar hydrogen, and the 3He/4He ratio of (1.1 +/- 0.2) x 10(-4) provides a new value for protosolar (solar nebula) helium isotopes. Together, the D/H and 3He/4He ratios are consistent with conversion in the sun of protosolar deuterium to present-day 3He.

NASA Discipline Number 52-10↗

Software Verification of VARPOW

The VARPOW program is a post-processing utility program for DIF3D, specifically DIF3DVARIANT, and it was developed to provide interface files for the thermal analysis program DASSH. The basic methodology of VARPOW is to take the neutron and gamma flux (moments) calculated by DIF3D (or GAMSOR) and combine them with the heating (coefficient) cross sections to calculate the spatial power distributions using the DIF3DVARIANT spatial basis. VARPOW can use the output from GAMSOR (both steady state neutron and gamma flux calculations) or standard DIF3D/REBUS calculations (neutron flux only). The correct approach for defining the power distribution is to use GAMSOR as its purpose was to properly compute the gamma heating throughout the modeled domain. The power densities calculated by VARPOW are broken into fuel, cladding and coolant terms for which isotope-wise categorization is needed. VARPOW has built in options the user can select for the isotope categorization or VARPOW can import a file that details the isotope categorization. VARPOW can export the solution in the polynomial basis of DIF3D-VARIANT or the monomial basis of DIF3D-VARIANT. The purpose of this work is to verify the power distribution results calculated by VARPOW from both the GAMSOR and DIF3D input options and verify that the input and output options are consistent with the manual. Hand calculation and independent numerical calculation are used for this verification work.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

Software Verification of VARPOW

The VARPOW program is a post-processing utility program for DIF3D, specifically DIF3DVARIANT, and it was developed to provide interface files for the thermal analysis program DASSH. The basic methodology of VARPOW is to take the neutron and gamma flux (moments) calculated by DIF3D (or GAMSOR) and combine them with the heating (coefficient) cross sections to calculate the spatial power distributions using the DIF3DVARIANT spatial basis. VARPOW can use the output from GAMSOR (both steady state neutron and gamma flux calculations) or standard DIF3D/REBUS calculations (neutron flux only). The correct approach for defining the power distribution is to use GAMSOR as its purpose was to properly compute the gamma heating throughout the modeled domain. The power desnities calculated by VARPOW are broken into fuel, cladding and coolant terms for which isotope-wise categorization is needed. VARPOW has built in options the user can select for the isotope categorization or VARPOW can import a file that details the isotope categorization. VARPOW can export the solution in the polynomial basis of DIF3D-VARIANT or the monomial basis of DIF3D-VARIANT. The purpose of this work is to verify the power distribution results calculated by VARPOW from both the GAMSOR and DIF3D input options and verify that the input and output options are consistent with the manual. Hand calculation and independent numerical calculation are used for this verification work.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Software Verification of VARPOW

The VARPOW program is a post-processing utility program for DIF3D, specifically DIF3DVARIANT, and it was developed to provide interface files for the thermal analysis program DASSH. The basic methodology of VARPOW is to take the neutron and gamma flux (moments) calculated by DIF3D (or GAMSOR) and combine them with the heating (coefficient) cross sections to calculate the spatial power distributions using the DIF3DVARIANT spatial basis. VARPOW can use the output from GAMSOR (both steady state neutron and gamma flux calculations) or standard DIF3D/REBUS calculations (neutron flux only). The correct approach for defining the power distribution is to use GAMSOR as its purpose was to properly compute the gamma heating throughout the modeled domain. The power desnities calculated by VARPOW are broken into fuel, cladding and coolant terms for which isotope-wise categorization is needed. VARPOW has built in options the user can select for the isotope categorization or VARPOW can import a file that details the isotope categorization. VARPOW can export the solution in the polynomial basis of DIF3D-VARIANT or the monomial basis of DIF3D-VARIANT. Recently the clad neutron damage calculation capability was introduced into VARPOW, and it now allows a pathway to get distributions of clad DPA. The purpose of this work is to verify the power distribution, fast neutron flux and clad DPA results calculated by VARPOW from both the GAMSOR and DIF3D input options and verify that the input and output options are consistent with the manual. Hand calculation and independent numerical calculation are used for this verification work.

Zhong, Zhaopeng [Argonne National Laboratory (ANL)↗