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Development of Monte Carlo methods for reactor kinetics analysis: application to the ZOE pile


Thesis topic details

General information

Organisation

The French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) is a key player in research, development and innovation in four main areas :
• defence and security,
• nuclear energy (fission and fusion),
• technological research for industry,
• fundamental research in the physical sciences and life sciences.

Drawing on its widely acknowledged expertise, and thanks to its 16000 technicians, engineers, researchers and staff, the CEA actively participates in collaborative projects with a large number of academic and industrial partners.

The CEA is established in ten centers spread throughout France
  

Reference

SL-DES-27-0158  

Thesis topic details

Category

Engineering science

Thesis topics

Development of Monte Carlo methods for reactor kinetics analysis: application to the ZOE pile

Contract

Thèse

Job description

The Monte Carlo code TRIPOLI-5 is under development with the mid-term aim of simulating nuclear reactor behavior under both steady-state and transient conditions. This is achieved by leveraging high-performance computing (HPC) architectures and natively integrating physical feedback effects. Methods for addressing non-stationary transport problems are categorized into three main approaches: the point kinetic approximation, the determination of the asymptotic behaviour, and solving the exact kinetic equations which allows for a comprehensive characterization of core behavior. In this PhD thesis, we propose to evaluate the performance of these three approaches within the HPC context of TRIPOLI-5 and subsequently implement them by leveraging and generalizing the strategies derived from previous work. In particular, an additional challenge in this thesis will involve addressing photonuclear reactions, which induce a coupling between neutron and photon tranport equations. The developments achieved during this thesis will then be applied to the ZOE pile, France's first nuclear reactor, built by the CEA at the Fontenay-aux-Roses site, which achieved criticality on December 15, 1948. A set of experimental measurements available in historical reports will provide a validation basis for the reactor kinetics analysis methods developed in TRIPOLI-5. Since the ZOE pile was heavy-water moderated, photonuclear reactions on deuterium must be explicitly accounted for to accurately determine the evolution of reactor kinetics.

University / doctoral school

PHENIICS (PHENIICS)
Paris-Saclay

Thesis topic location

Site

Saclay

Requester

Position start date

01/10/2027

Person to be contacted by the applicant

JINAPHANH Alexis alexis.jinaphanh@cea.fr
CEA
DES/DM2S/SERMA/LTSD
CEA / Saclay
Bat. 470 p. 222
DES/ISAS/DM2S/SERMA/LTSD
91191 Gif sur Yvette Cedex, France
01 69 08 62 75

Tutor / Responsible thesis director

ZOIA Andrea andrea.zoia@cea.fr
CEA
DES/DM2S/SERMA/LTSD
Commissariat à l’Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives
Centre de Saclay
DES/ISAS/DM2S/SERMA/LTSD
Bat 470 - PC 212
91191 Gif sur Yvette Cedex, France


01 69 08 89 49

En savoir plus


https://www.cea.fr/energies/tripoli-4/Pages/Accueil.aspx