Calculation and Analysis of Physical Characteristics of Gaseous Fuel Reactor

Nuclear energy plays a more important role in future energy development due to its characteristics of high power density. Presently, prevalent commercial nuclear reactors predominantly feature pressurized water reactor configurations, wherein solid fuel rods serve as the principal fuel components. commercial nuclear power plants face limitations on burnup depth, with a cap at 45 gigawatt-days per metric ton of uranium (GWD/MTU) due to cladding materials constraints. This poses disposal challenges for high-level radioactive waste. Research into gaseous fuel reactors utilizing uranium hexafluoride as fuel seeks to address these constraints by eliminating fuel element manufacturing costs and enhancing burnup depth. This study applied Reactor Physics Monte Carlo (RMC) analysis to examine the steady-state physical characteristics of gaseous fuel reactors, focusing on system criticality, reactivity control, and burnup. Calculations showed that under specific conditions (system pressure at 15 atm, 20% fuel enrichment, and beryllium oxide as a reflector), the system's effective multiplication factor (???? ????????????) can reach 1.206. Control drums used as the reactivity control system resulted in a reactivity worth 0.235. The core energy spectrum influences the system's burnup depth, and a harder spectrum allows for a burnup depth of 166.5GWD/MTU, while significantly reducing actinide element content. This indicates that gaseous fuel reactors hold promise for further academic exploration from a physics perspective.