Fast Reactors and Accelerator Driven Systems Knowledge Base

Conference Article: A sensitivity approach to the analysis of source driven systems

A. Gandini BNBA, CRE Casaccia (Rome), Italy

Abstract

In design and operation studies relevant to complex systems, perturbation, or sensitivity analysis have always played an important role. This stems from the interest of evaluating the changes of significant responses (relevant to performance, safety, etc.) following alterations of system parameters (such as physical constants and design specifications), in terms of integration operations of functions calculated at unperturbed system conditions. The heuristically based, generalised perturbation theory (HGPT) method has been extensively used so far to this purpose for the analysis of nuclear reactor systems. As well known, its use leads to fundamental reciprocity relationships from which perturbation, orsensitivity expressions can be derived to first and higher order. The application of this methodology to subcritical, source-driven systems, now considered with increasing interest in many laboratories for their potential use as nuclear waste burners and/or safer energy producers, is commented, with particular emphasis to problems implying an intensive system control variable.

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key words: Fast Neutron Spectrum Systems, Nuclear Technology
Reference:
Technical Committee Meeting, Madrid, Spain 17-19 September 1997
International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna (Austria)
IAEA-TC--903.3, pp:383-398