″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A.

Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS

Dr. Pierre-André Haldi

EPFL Energy Center
Château de Bassenges
Station 5 http://moodle.epfl.ch → Section physique
1005 Lausanne
℡ int. 32490 Enrolment key:
[email protected] NEM_Fossil&RenewableSyst

″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Lesson 2:
Fission Characteristics, Nuclear Fuels, Cross-sections
Historical Background
Fission Products
Fission Neutrons, Fission Spectrum
Chain Reaction
Delayed Neutrons, Neutron precursor characteristics
Fission Energy, Decay (residual) Heat
Nuclear Fuels, Fuel Burnup
Neutron Cross-sections (low, intermediate, “high” energies)

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 ″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Historical background
► 1932: Discovery of the neutron

vacuum
Electrically neutral radiation

Geiger
α 0n
1
p counter
to an oscillograph
amplifier recorder

Be
Sir James Chadwick
(1891 – 1974) Po source Target material (paraffin ⇒ hydrogen content)

2He
4 + 4Be9 → 6C12 + 0n1 or Be9 (α, n) C12

″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Historical background
► 1934: Fermi’s activation studies

“Transmutations”
Z XA + 0n1 → ZXA+1 → (β-- decay)
→ Z+1YA+1 + γ

Z > 92
Transuranic elements expected

Transmutations occurred more easily if the

neutrons were first “slowed down”

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 ″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Historical background
► 1938: Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassman’s experiment

Barium (Z = 56) found in elements created by the irradiation of uranium

with slow neutrons

″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Historical background
► 1939: Lise Meitner and Otto Frish’s explanation

drop model of the nucleus

Absorption of Excited Instable
a slow neutron nucleus nucleus Fission F.P.’s
Surface γ
oscillations
99
n γ

γ
Electric
n
235U repulsion
between =>
nucleons n
γ
133
n
"surface tension“
(nuclear forces)
γ

What Hahn and Strassman had observed was the result of the fission of
the uranium nucleus, as theoretically predicted by Niels Bohr

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 ″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Historical background
► 1939: Einstein’s theory ⇒ huge energy released by fission
Applying Einstein’s relation, E = m⋅c2, Meitner calculated that the two
fragments of the uranium nucleus (F.P.s) should violently move apart
one from the other with an energy of around 200 MeV

91
Kr
0n 36

0n
235
U
92 142
Ba
56

2-3 neutrons produced

per fission ⇒ chain
reaction possible

″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Historical background
► 1939: Bohr’s discovery of the role of the isotope U235
Niels Bohr discovers that the divergences observed during experiments
in the U.S.A. aiming at measuring the fission cross-section of uranium
were due to different properties of the two uranium isotopes, U235 and
U238, the former only being fissionable by slow neutrons
105
Fiss. U-235
104
Cross-section [barn]

103
Capt. U-235
102

101 Capt. U-238

100

10-1
Fiss. U-238
10-2 -10
10 10-9 10-8 10-7 10-6 10-5 10-4 10-3 10-2 10-1 100 101
Energy [MeV]

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 ″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Historical background
► 1942: First controlled fission chain reaction
Fermi and his team realized the first demonstration of a controlled
fission chain reaction (Dec. 2, 1942) in the Chicago Pile-1 (CP-1) built
under the football stadium of the Chicago University

Origin of the terme "SCRAM“:

Power: ½ watt ! "Safety Control Reserve Axed Man"!

″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Historical background
► Post-war years: First electricity generated from atom energy
EBR-I – Experimental Breeder Reactor I - was designed at Argonne
National Laboratory in 1949. Besides generating the world’s first
electricity from atomic energy, it was also the first breeder reactor and the
first to use plutonium fuel

1.2 MWe

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 ″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Historical background
years Naval reactor → USS Nautilus (SSN-571)
► Post-war years:
Planned and supervised by Admiral Hyman G.
Rickover, the construction of the first nuclear-
powered submarine, USS Nautilus, was achieved in
January 1954

August 3, 1958, Operation Limited spa-

“Sunshine”
ce ⇒ high
power densi-
ty reactor de-
Under the
North Pole!
sign ⇒ PWR

″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Fission products
7
U235
Asymmetric splitting is more
probable 6
Pu239
Relative fission yield [%]

5
⇒ Yield: y(A) → “double-hump” Pu241
curve 4
Cf252
3

70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140 150 160 170

Fragment mass [a.m.u.]

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 ″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Fission products
10
Asymmetric splitting is more 14 MeV
probable

Relative fission yield [%]

1

⇒ Yield: y(A) → “double-hump”

curve 0.1

For U235 :
0.01
most probable splitting:
F.P.s with Ai ~ 94, Aj ~ 140 Thermal
0.001
e.g. :
0.0001
92U
235 + n1→
0 38Sr + 54Xe
94 140+ 2 0n1 70 80 90 100 110 120 130 140 150
Fragment mass [a.m.u.]

″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Fission products → unstable (excess of neutrons) → radioactivity

Example:
140 (16s) 14 (66s) 140
54Xe 55Cs 56Ba
(12.8d) 14 (40h) 140
57La 58Ce (stable)

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 ″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Fission products → ”Poisoning” in power reactors
Influence on the neutron balance

Special
A case (the only really important one in thermal reactors): 54Xe135

→
53I
135
55Cs
135
F.P. yI⋅Nf⋅σf⋅Φ λI⋅NI λX⋅NX Radioactive
(σa)th ∼ 2.7 106 b !
yI ~ 6% decay
54Xe
135
F.P. yX⋅Nf⋅σf⋅Φ NX⋅(σc)X⋅Φ Neutron
yX ~5% Production Destruction capture

At equilibrium Fraction of neutrons

dNI (d/dt=0): captured in Xe135:
= yI⋅Nf⋅σf⋅Φ - λI⋅NI
dt (yX +yI)⋅Nf⋅σf⋅Φ NX⋅(σc)X
NX = FX =
dNX (σc)X⋅Φ + λX Nf⋅(σa)f
= yX⋅Nf⋅σf⋅Φ + λI⋅NI - NX⋅(σc)X⋅Φ - λX⋅NX
dt
(σc)X⋅Φ Σ
2 to 4 % for Φ > 1014 [n/cm2⋅s] (yX +yI)⋅ ⋅ f
(σc)X⋅Φ + λX Σa f

″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Fission neutrons → ν neutrons created per fission (0 ≤ ν ≤ 5; ν ≈ 2.5)
Most are “prompt”

→
→
fission

radioactive
A few of them are decay
“delayed”

ν depends on isotope Fissionable isotope ν0 a [MeV-1]

and neutron energy: U235 (for E ≤ 1 MeV) 2.43 0.065
ν = ν0 + a⋅E U235 (for E > 1 MeV) 2.35 0.150
Pu239 (for E ≤ 1 MeV) 2.87 0.148
ν nearly constant at
low energies Pu239 (for E > 1 MeV) 2.92 0.133

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 ″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Fission neutrons → ν neutrons created per fission (0 ≤ ν ≤ 5; ν ≈ 2.5)
Most are “prompt”

→
→
fission

radioactive
A few of them are decay
“delayed”

For a mixture of isotopes Fissionable isotope ν0 a [MeV-1]

(e.g. U235, Pu239 …): U235 (for E ≤ 1 MeV) 2.43 0.065

Σi (νi⋅Σfi) U235 (for E > 1 MeV) 2.35 0.150

νeff = U235 (for E ≤ 1 MeV) 2.87 0.148
Σi (Σfi) U235 (for E ≤ 1 MeV) 2.92 0.133

″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Fission neutrons → delayed neutrons

A small fraction of the neutrons

Br87 (55 s)
(~ 0.6% for U235) are not prompt but
produced by disintegration of F.P.s, β- Emitted after
e.g.: β-
etc. some delay
1
0n
β- β- β- β-
35Br 36Kr 37Rb 38Sr
87 87 87 87
55 s
(stable)
1
0n Kr86 (stable)
36Kr
86

“precursor” (stable)

β-
Many different precursors, grouped in Kr87

~ 6 “families”: Rb87 β-

Sr87 (stable)
yi, Ti ⇒ βi, λi (i = 1,6)

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 ″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Fission neutrons → characteristics of delayed neutrons (for U235)

λpi’s relatively independent Gr. Precursors Ei [MeV] (T1/2)i [s] λi [s-1] βi

of the fissionable isotope 1 Br87 0.25 55.72 0.0124 0.000215
2 I137, Br88 0.56 22.72 0.0305 0.001424
βp
i’s depend on isotope, e.g.: 3 I138, Br89… 0.40 - 45 6.22 0.111 0.001274
4 I139, Cs … 0.450 2.30 0.301 0.002568
β = Σ βi = 0.21% for Pu239
i 5 I140, Kr … 0.42 0.61 1.14 0.000748
β = Σ βi = 0.26% for U233 6 Br, Rb … 0.23 3.01 0.000273
… other “fissiles” E→ ~ 0.4 Total: β=Σβi → 0.0065

small, but very important for control of the chain reaction

⇒ kinetic behaviour determined by the T1/2’s if not “prompt critic”

″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Fission neutrons → emitted neutrons energies vary (spectrum χ (E))

0.40 χmax
χ (E) = 0.4527⋅e-E/0.965.sinh(2.29⋅E)0.5 0.35
0.30

∞ 0.25

E= ∫ E ⋅ χ (E) dE ≈ 2.0 MeV 0.20

0 0.15
0.10
(E slightly higher for Pu239) 0.05 E
0
0 0.75 1 2 3 4 5 6

“Slowing down ratio” in a thermal reactor > 107 (from ∼ 2 MeV to 0.0253 eV)!
⇒ efficient moderators needed (light nuclei: H2O, graphite,…)

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 ″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Reminder of nuclear physics

► Chain reaction
2 to 3 neutrons
emitted per fission ⇒
possibility of genera-
ting a chain reaction

The reaction becomes

exponentially divergent !

″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Chain reaction

In practice (in a nuclear reactor)

not all absorptions are “useful”

Certain neutrons are lost

through capture (e.g. in control
rods) or leakage (out of the
frontier of the reactor)

For a self-sustaining reaction (stationary neutron flux):

Productions = Losses = Absorptions + Leakage
(criticality condition)

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 ″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Fission energy
Distribution Released Recovered Most of the energy is ab-
energy energy sorbed in the fuel, ~ 180 to
[MeV] [MeV]
190 MeV (F.P.s, β-’s, part
F.P.s (kinetic energy) 168 168 of γ’s), in form of heat re-
covered by the coolant
Fission neutrons (ν⋅2 MeV) 5 5

Prompt γ’s 7 7

F.P.s – radioactivity (β-) 8 8

F.P.s – radioactivity (γ-) 7 7

Neutrinos 12

Capture γ’s 5 to 10

Total 207 200 to 205

″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Fission energy → residual power (“decay heat”)
10-1
The energy released by P/P0 (P0: nominal power of the reactor)
the decay of radioactive ~7%
F.P.s depends on the
FP’s accumulated
10-2
Short-lived ones are ra- <1%
pidly in equilibrium
Presence of others de-
pends on the duration 10-3
of reactor operation
The “decay heat” issue Tirrad → 1h 10h 1d 5d 30d 1yr ∞
is an important conside- Time after
shutdown
ration in nuclear safety 10-4
10 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 t [s]
1h 1d 1mth 1yr

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 ″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Nuclear fuels

Fertile Fissile*

Thorium Uranium * Characterized by

high σf values for
Natural

T1/2 T1/2 T1/2

1.405×1010 yr 4.46×109yr 7.04×108yr slow (thermal)
neutrons

90Th 92U (99.28%) 92U (0.72%)

232 238 235
“Artificial”

0n + 92U238 → 92U239 → 93Np239 94Pu

1 239
T1/2 = 2.41×104 yr

0n + 90Th232 → 90Th233 → 91Pa233 92U

1 233 T1/2 = 1.60×105 yr

″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Fuel burnup
p
Fission of 1g of fissile material (U235, Pu239
or U ) :
233

[(6.023 1023 at/atgr) / 235 g/atgr] . 200 MeV/at.

(1.6 10-13 J/MeV) = 8.2 1010 J/g ≈ 1 MWd/g

(this is ~ 2 106x the energy liberated by the burning of 1g of carbon: 34 kJ)

Unit
p of combustion for nuclear fuel (burnup): MWd/t (of fuel)

Ifp one could fission all the atoms, the burnup would be ~ 106 MWd/t

Usually,
p ~ 4% of the mass is fissile ⇒ burnup of the order of 40’000 MWd/t

In
p practice, radiation damage could limit the burnup to lower values

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 ″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► U235 cross-section, σf, σt
σ [barn]

σt
1000

σf

100
σt

10

σf
thermal “resonance” (epithermal) fast
1
0.001 0.01 0.1 1 10 100 1000 1
0n energy [eV]

″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Fission cross-sections for fast neutrons
σf
[barn] Pu239 U235 U233 Fission cross-section
5 values of the fissile
isotopes (U233, U235,
4 Pu239 …) are relatively
small for fast neutrons
3
Fertile isotopes (Th232,
U238, Pu240 …) have
2
non-zero fission cross-
section value only
1
above isotope-specific
Pu240 U238 Th232 thresholds
0
103 104 105 106 Energy [eV]

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 ″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Absorption cross-sections σa (σc + σf) at low energies
For
p absorption (cap- σa
[barn]
ture + fission)
B10 (n,α)
σ ~ 1/√E ~ 1/v 104

Probability
p of absorp-
ption decreases with 102
neutron velocity, e.g.

5B
10 + 0n1 → 3Li7 + 2He4 100

Cross-section
~ 1/v till 105 eV
10-3 100 103 106 E [eV]

″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Scattering cross-sections σs (elastic) at low energies
σ
For
p elastic scattering [barn]
C12
σs ≈ σt ~ constant 10
below 1 MeV for light σt ≈ σs
5
nuclei (moderators)
σt
p
Example: C12
The total and scatte- 1
ring cross-sections σs
0.5
are almost constant
between 0.01 and
104 – 105 eV
0.1
104 105 106 107 E [eV]

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 ″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Cross-sections at intermediate (epithermal) energies
Some
p absorption reactions have a large resonance at low energy,
e.g. Au (n,γ )
197
Reduced 197
scale 79Au (n,γ)
σa
[b] resonance
Au197 (n,γ)
103

102

101
4.9 eV
10-3 10-2 10-1 1 10 E [eV]

″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Cross-sections at intermediate (epithermal) energies
Resonance
p region for heavy nuclei
σt [b]
- Large, narrow resonances
500
at E > a few eV (resolved
region first, unresolved at
higher energies)
100
- In nuclear reactors, reso-
50
nances in U238 are the
most important (signifi-
cant fraction of neutron
captures during slowing- 10
down in the epithermal 1
x 100
1 1
x 100 x 100
region) 5

100 101 102 103 E [eV]

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 ″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Cross-sections at high energies
Inelastic
p scattering
σi [b]
- The target nucleus becomes excited
The neutron energy must be higher
than a given limit (“threshold”) 44 keV
This is the main mechanism for 100
heavy nuclei to slow down fast
neutrons
146 keV
Example:
p U238 10-1
300 keV
- σi (inelastic), with individual com-
ponents corresponding to different etc.
excitation levels
10-2
10-2 10-1 100 E [MeV]

″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Fission characteristics
► Cross-sections at high energies
Other
p threshold reactions
σ [barn]
- (n, p), (n, α) σi U238
- (n, 2n), (n, 3n) ; e.g. U238

Exceptions 2
p
σn, 2n
- Some “exoenergetic” reactions, e.g.
B10(n,α), have large thermal cross-
sections 1

σn, 3n
Fast
p fissions in fertile isotopes are
also threshold reactions
- U238(n, f), Th232(n, f) 0
0 5 10 E [MeV]

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 ″INTRODUCTION TO NEUTRONICS″: Dr. P.-A. Haldi, Academic year 2008-2009

Summary of Lesson 2
SFission discovered relatively soon after discovery of neutron
SLarge variety of F.P. combinations possible (“double-hump” curve)
SF.P.s radioactive (β- - decay): decay heat, important safety factor
S2.5 neutrons emitted by fission on average make chain reaction possible
SDelayed n’s from decay of radioactive F.P.s, crucial for reactor control
SMost of fission energy deposited (as heat) in the fuel
SNuclear fuels: U, Th; only U235 fissile; U238, Th232 fertile (→ Pu239, U233)
SNeutron cross-sections: thermal, intermediate and fast spectrum regions
SAbsorptions, ~1/v in thermal range, scattering almost constant
SResonances in epithermal range (e.g. U238), threshold reactions

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