Conceptual design of ASTRID radial shielding sub-assemblies

T. Beck (1) , N. Chapoutier (2) , J.-M. Escleine (1) , L. Gauthier (2) , D. Occhipinti (2) , B. Perrin (2) , M. Phelip (1) , C. Venard (1)

1 CEA-DES (ex-DEN) - CEA-Direction des Energies (ex-Direction de l'Energie Nucléaire)
2 AREVA

The French 600 MWe Advanced Sodium Technological Reactor for Industrial Demonstration (ASTRID) project reached in 2015 the end of its conceptual design phase. The core design studies are being conducted by the CEA with support from AREVA and EDF. Innovative design choices for the core havebeen made to comply with the GEN IV reactor objectives, marking a break with the former Phenix and Superphenix Sodium Fast Reactors.One of the biggest challenges of the last five years was to propose a consistent design for the reflectors and neutron shielding sub-assemblies surrounding the fuel core in order to fulfill ASTRID requirements of minimising the secondary sodium activity level. Heavy iterative studies on both core and sub-assemblies were necessary to propose and evaluate different solutions following a strict value analysis process considering neutron shielding performances, life duration, maturity levels, washing and manufacturing capability, and qualification needs. Evaluated options were reflectors sub-assemblies made of steel or MgO rods, and radialneutron shielding sub-assemblies made of B4C or borated steel, with different configurations in the design and in the core layout.This paper presents the iterative engineering studies, conducted by CEA and performed by AREVA-NP, concerning the radial shielding sub-assemblies for ASTRID core, from the selection of possible solutions to a final consistent conceptual design.

Mots clés: Reflector; neutron shielding; sub-assembly; ASTRID; SFR

Domaines: Physique Nucléaire Expérimentale [nucl-ex]; Physique Nucléaire Théorique [nucl-th]

T. Beck, N. Chapoutier, J.-M. Escleine, L. Gauthier, D. Occhipinti, et al.. Conceptual design of ASTRID radial shielding sub-assemblies. International Congress on Advances in Nuclear Power Plants (ICAPP - 2017), Apr 2017, Fukui and Kyoto, Japan. ⟨cea-02437052⟩