Evaluation of the adequacy of using few-group lattice-homogenized properties for the diffusion analysis of the super critical water reactor

Two issues may affect the accuracy of computed core reactivities and flux/power distributions for the Super Critical Water Reactor (SCWR) core with traditional core-analysis code RFSP: one is the two-energy-group neutron-diffusion theory; the other is the generation of lattice-homogenized properties with the lattice code based on the single-lattice-cell model without considering the effects of the environment. These two issues are not SCWR specific; however their effect may be more significant for SCWR. It has been illustrated that the lattice-homogenized properties calculated with the single-lattice-cell model is not sufficiently accurate for heterogeneous core configurations such as ACR-1000 checkerboard-voiding and core-reflector interface when adjacent channels experience significant spectrum interaction. To evaluate the adequacy of using two-group neutron-diffusion theory with single-lattice-based lattice properties for the analysis of the SCWR core, a 2-D SCWR benchmark problem was setup with the reference solution provided by the continuous-energy Monte-Carlo code SERPENT. The assessment shows that the traditional two-group neutron-diffusion theory with the single-lattice-cell- based lattice properties is not sufficient to capture either the spectral change or the environment effect for the SCWR core. The solution of the eight-group neutron-diffusion equation with the multicell- based lattice properties is considered appropriate for the analysis of the d SCWR core.