Benchmarking of Monte Carlo based shutdown dose rate calculations for applications to JET

• Published in: Radiation protection dosimetry Vol. 115; no. 1-4; pp. 80 - 85
• Main Authors: Petrizzi, L., Batistoni, P., Fischer, U., Loughlin, M., Pereslavtsev, P., Villari, R.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Oxford University Press 01.01.2005
• Subjects: Algorithms; Benchmarking; Computer Simulation; Equipment Failure; Equipment Failure Analysis - methods; Equipment Failure Analysis - standards; European Union; Facility Design and Construction - methods; Facility Design and Construction - standards; Models, Statistical; Monte Carlo Method; Neutrons; Nuclear Reactors; Radiation Dosage; Radiation Monitoring - methods; Radiation Protection - instrumentation; Radiation Protection - methods; Radiation Protection - standards; Software; Software Validation
• ISSN: 0144-8420; 1742-3406
• DOI: 10.1093/rpd/nci183

The calculation of dose rates after shutdown is an important issue for operating nuclear reactors. A validated computational tool is needed for reliable dose rate calculations. In fusion reactors neutrons induce high levels of radioactivity and presumably high doses. The complex geometries of the devices require the use of sophisticated geometry modelling and computational tools for transport calculations. Simple rule of thumb laws do not always apply well. Two computational procedures have been developed recently and applied to fusion machines. Comparisons between the two methods showed some inherent discrepancies when applied to calculation for the ITER while good agreement was found for a 14 MeV point source neutron benchmark experiment. Further benchmarks were considered necessary to investigate in more detail the reasons for the different results in different cases. In this frame the application to the Joint European Torus JET machine has been considered as a useful benchmark exercise. In a first calculational benchmark with a representative D-T irradiation history of JET the two methods differed by no more than 25%. In another, more realistic benchmark exercise, which is the subject of this paper, the real irradiation history of D-T and D-D campaigns conducted at JET in 1997-98 were used to calculate the shut-down doses at different locations, irradiation and decay times. Experimental dose data recorded at JET for the same conditions offer the possibility to check the prediction capability of the calculations and thus show the applicability (and the constraints) of the procedures and data to the rather complex shutdown dose rate analysis of real fusion devices. Calculation results obtained by the two methods are reported below, comparison with experimental results give discrepancies ranging between 2 and 10. The reasons of that can be ascribed to the high uncertainty on the experimental data and the unsatisfactory JET model used in the calculation. A new dedicated JET benchmark experiment will be performed trying to solve these issues.