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INL researchers use LEDs to shed light on next-gen reactors
At Idaho National Laboratory, researchers have built a bridge between computer models and the lab’s Microreactor Applications Research Validation and Evaluation (MARVEL) microreactor.
Tony Crawford, an INL researcher and MARVEL’s reactivity control system lead, designed a phone booth–sized surrogate nuclear reactor called ViBRANT, or Visual Benign Reactor as Analog for Nuclear Testing, which uses light instead of neutrons to show a “nuclear” reaction.
Hatice Akkurt
Nuclear Technology | Volume 210 | Number 10 | October 2024 | Pages 1843-1857
Research Article | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2024.2302734
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Neutron-absorber materials are used in spent fuel pool (SFP) storage racks to increase storage capacity while maintaining criticality safety margins. Previously, the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) proposed a global, industrywide learning aging management program (i-LAMP) as an alternative monitoring program as part of an aging management program. This proposal, along with other EPRI work, was accepted as a concept to close the issued generic letter by the regulator. Since then, EPRI has been working with EPRI-member utilities around the world on data collection. Furthermore, recently, a utility removed two neutron-absorber panels from an operating SFP to meet a regulatory commitment made prior to the i-LAMP proposal. Because of their age and unique history, these panels provided a unique opportunity not only to analyze the conditions of the panels, but also to potentially bound i-LAMP. This paper presents i-LAMP development to date with a focus on BORAL analysis results for these two unique panels, pilot pools as case studies to demonstrate the i-LAMP implementation, and a proposal for a path forward.