TY - JOUR
T1 - Ar-41 source term investigation in HTR-PM
T2 - Theory, calculations, and experiments
AU - Nie, Rui
AU - Guo, Jiong
AU - Ma, Qian
AU - Chen, Xi
AU - Zhang, Yulin
AU - Jia, Wenting
AU - Wang, Yu
AU - Xie, Feng
AU - Cao, Jianzhu
AU - Zhou, Yaoquan
AU - Boafo, Emmanuel K.
AU - He, Qingming
AU - Cao, Liangzhi
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2025 Elsevier B.V.
PY - 2025/11
Y1 - 2025/11
N2 - Ar-41 is a significant activation product in high-temperature gas-cooled reactors (HTGRs). Based on the design and operational parameters of a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor pebble-bed module (HTR-PM), we analyzed the Ar-41 source and constructed an Ar-41 source-term calculation model for HTGRs. For the first time, we presented the measured data of Ar-41 activity in the primary coolant of HTR-PM: during startup, the experimental value could reach up to 109 Bq·m−3, consistent with the theoretical prediction of 1.99×109 Bq·m−3; during normal operation, that fluctuated between 106 and 108 Bq·m−3, in agreement with the theoretical value of 3.27×107 Bq·m−3. The effective dose rates for workers in the reactor, steam generator, helium purification system, and fuel loading and unloading compartments are 4.87×10-2, 3.17×10-4, 2.17×10-5, and 9.23×10-6 Sv·d-1, respectively. The largest effective dose rate for adult members of the public within an 80 km radius from the plant is 6.61×10-8 Sv·d-1. In addition, the key factors that can affect the Ar-41 activity in the primary coolant and the effect of Ar-41 on the activity concentration conversion factor of the gross γ monitoring instrument were discussed. This work provides an important reference for studying the radiation safety in advanced nuclear energy systems and fusion reactors.
AB - Ar-41 is a significant activation product in high-temperature gas-cooled reactors (HTGRs). Based on the design and operational parameters of a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor pebble-bed module (HTR-PM), we analyzed the Ar-41 source and constructed an Ar-41 source-term calculation model for HTGRs. For the first time, we presented the measured data of Ar-41 activity in the primary coolant of HTR-PM: during startup, the experimental value could reach up to 109 Bq·m−3, consistent with the theoretical prediction of 1.99×109 Bq·m−3; during normal operation, that fluctuated between 106 and 108 Bq·m−3, in agreement with the theoretical value of 3.27×107 Bq·m−3. The effective dose rates for workers in the reactor, steam generator, helium purification system, and fuel loading and unloading compartments are 4.87×10-2, 3.17×10-4, 2.17×10-5, and 9.23×10-6 Sv·d-1, respectively. The largest effective dose rate for adult members of the public within an 80 km radius from the plant is 6.61×10-8 Sv·d-1. In addition, the key factors that can affect the Ar-41 activity in the primary coolant and the effect of Ar-41 on the activity concentration conversion factor of the gross γ monitoring instrument were discussed. This work provides an important reference for studying the radiation safety in advanced nuclear energy systems and fusion reactors.
KW - Activity concentration conversion factor
KW - Ar-41
KW - HTR-PM
KW - Radiation dose
KW - Sensitivity analysis
KW - Source term calculation
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105010199417
U2 - 10.1016/j.nucengdes.2025.114271
DO - 10.1016/j.nucengdes.2025.114271
M3 - 文章
AN - SCOPUS:105010199417
SN - 0029-5493
VL - 443
JO - Nuclear Engineering and Design
JF - Nuclear Engineering and Design
M1 - 114271
ER -