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At least 1,639 records · Page 91

Diagnosing Undersampling Biases in Monte Carlo Eigenvalue and Flux Tally Estimates

Here, this study focuses on understanding the phenomena in Monte Carlo simulations known as undersampling, in which Monte Carlo tally estimates may not encounter a sufficient number of particles during each generation to obtain unbiased tally estimates. Steady-state Monte Carlo simulations were performed using the KENO Monte Carlo tools within the SCALE code system for models of several burnup credit applications with varying degrees of spatial and isotopic complexities, and the incidence and impact of undersampling on eigenvalue and flux estimates were examined. Using an inadequate number of particle histories in each generation was found to produce a maximum bias of ~100 pcm in eigenvalue estimates and biases that exceeded 10% in fuel pin flux tally estimates. Having quantified the potential magnitude of undersampling biases in eigenvalue and flux tally estimates in these systems, this study then investigated whether Markov Chain Monte Carlo convergence metrics could be integrated into Monte Carlo simulations to predict the onset and magnitude of undersampling biases. Five potential metrics for identifying undersampling biases were implemented in the SCALE code system and evaluated for their ability to predict undersampling biases by comparing the test metric scores with the observed undersampling biases. Finally, of the five convergence metrics that were investigated, three (the Heidelberger-Welch relative half-width, the Gelman-Rubin $\hat{R}_c$ diagnostic, and tally entropy) showed the potential to accurately predict the behavior of undersampling biases in the responses examined.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

Dose Maps In/Around Target and Test Cell for DONES During the Operation

DONES (DEMO-Oriented Neutron Source) is to be constructed in order to investigate materials that are intended to be used for DEMO (DEMOnstration Power Plant) since they will be irradiated with very high fluxes of neutrons. A deuteron beam will bombard a lithium target situated in the so called Test Cell (TC) shielded with concrete. Monte Carlo simulations by means of the MCNP (Monte Carlo N-Particle) code were carried out to calculate both horizontal and vertical radiation dose maps in and around of the TC facility. Three geometrical configurations of the shielding and two kinds of concrete (ordinary and magnetite ones) were examined. For each case a spatial dose distribution and an accompanying errors map were provided. Advanced techniques of variance reduction were applied to compute doses in and outside of thick concrete walls. On the grounds of the obtained results a final configuration of the shielding was selected.

07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES↗

SU-F-T-127: Charged Particle Transport in Condensed Media

Purpose: Provide quality interaction cross sections for charged particle Monte Carlo (MC) track structure codes and evaluate low energy electron transport in condensed media. Methods: MC methods and codes are often used to model or simulate charged particle radiation transport in matter. Detailed (or event-by-event) track structure simulations are of special interest for the modeling of the physical and chemical stages of radiation action with matter and the initial radiation damage to biological systems. They require reliable interaction cross sections of all radiation qualities considered (e.g., electrons, protons, alpha particles, light and heavy ions) with the target material under consideration, mainly in the condensed phase, including liquids and solids. Interaction cross sections are calculated using the dielectric formalism, a mixture of first principles, theoretical modeling and experimental information for bulk and surface transport and implemented into MC track structure codes. Secondary electron emission yields from amorphous solid water (ASW) and thin metal foils (copper and gold) after fast proton impact are simulated and measured experimentally. Results: After considering different transport models for bulk and surface transport and a careful modeling of the experimental geometry, simulated secondary electron emission yields follow the trends of experimental data well. Furthermore, yields for electron emissions below 50 eV are sensitive to differential elastic scattering cross sections. Conclusion: Low-energy electron transport in condensed media is still a challenge for detailed track structure simulation codes. Interaction cross-sections, transport models, and target geometry need to be considered adequately. The research was funded in part by NSF Major Research Instrumentation Program 2009, Award Number: 0923270 and by NIH/NCI R01 CA93351.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

TurboRVB: A many-body toolkit for ab initio electronic simulations by quantum Monte Carlo

TurboRVB is a computational package for ab initio Quantum Monte Carlo (QMC) simulations of both molecular and bulk electronic systems. The code implements two types of well established QMC algorithms: Variational Monte Carlo (VMC) and diffusion Monte Carlo in its robust and efficient lattice regularized variant. A key feature of the code is the possibility of using strongly correlated many-body wave functions (WFs), capable of describing several materials with very high accuracy, even when standard mean-field approaches [e.g., density functional theory (DFT)] fail. The electronic WF is obtained by applying a Jastrow factor, which takes into account dynamical correlations, to the most general mean-field ground state, written either as an antisymmetrized geminal power with spin-singlet pairing or as a Pfaffian, including both singlet and triplet correlations. This WF can be viewed as an efficient implementation of the so-called resonating valence bond (RVB) Ansatz, first proposed by Pauling and Anderson in quantum chemistry [L. Pauling, The Nature of the Chemical Bond (Cornell University Press, 1960)] and condensed matter physics [P.W. Anderson, Mat. Res. Bull 8, 153 (1973)], respectively. The RVB Ansatz implemented in TurboRVB has a large variational freedom, including the Jastrow correlated Slater determinant as its simplest, but nontrivial case. Moreover, it has the remarkable advantage of remaining with an affordable computational cost, proportional to the one spent for the evaluation of a single Slater determinant. Therefore, its application to large systems is computationally feasible. The WF is expanded in a localized basis set. Several basis set functions are implemented, such as Gaussian, Slater, and mixed types, with no restriction on the choice of their contraction. The code implements the adjoint algorithmic differentiation that enables a very efficient evaluation of energy derivatives, comprising the ionic forces. Thus, one can perform structural optimizations and molecular dynamics in the canonical NVT ensemble at the VMC level. For the electronic part, a full WF optimization (Jastrow and antisymmetric parts together) is made possible, thanks to state-of-the-art stochastic algorithms for energy minimization. In the optimization procedure, the first guess can be obtained at the mean-field level by a built-in DFT driver. The code was efficiently parallelized by using a hybrid MPI-OpenMP protocol, which is also an ideal environment for exploiting the computational power of modern Graphics Processing Unit accelerators.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

SU-G-201-06: Directional Low-Dose Rate Brachytherapy: Determination of the TG-43 Dose-Rate Constant Analog for a New Pd-103 Source

Purpose: The aim of this work is to determine the TG-43 dose-rate constant analog for a new directional low-dose rate brachytherapy source based on experimental methods and comparison to Monte Carlo simulations. The CivaSheet™ is a new commercially available planar source array comprised of a variable number of discrete directional source elements called “CivaDots”. Given the directional nature and non-conventional design of the source, modifications to the AAPM TG-43 protocol for dosimetry are required. As a result, various parameters of the TG-43 dosimetric formalism have to be adapted to accommodate this source. This work focuses on the dose-rate constant analog determination for a CivaDot. Methods: Dose to water measurements of the CivaDot were performed in a polymethyl methacrylate phantom (20×20×12 cm{sup 3}) using thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLDs) and Gafchromic EBT3 film. The source was placed in the center of the phantom, and nine TLD micro-cubes were irradiated along its central axis at a distance of 1 cm. For the film measurements, the TLDs were substituted by a (3×3) cm{sup 2} EBT3 film. Primary air-kerma strength measurements of the source were performed using a variable-aperture free-air chamber. Finally, the source was modeled using the Monte Carlo N-Particle Transport Code 6. Results: Dose-rate constant analog observed for a total of eight CivaDots using TLDs and five CivaDots using EBT3 film was within ±7.0% and ±2.9% of the Monte Carlo predicted value respectively. The average difference observed was −4.8% and −0.1% with a standard deviation of 1.7% and 2.1% for the TLD and the film measurements respectively, which are both within the comparison uncertainty. Conclusion: A preliminary investigation to determine the doserate constant analog for a CivaDot was conducted successfully with good agreement between experimental and Monte Carlo based methods. This work will aid in the eventual realization of a clinically-viable dosimetric framework for the CivaSheet. This work was partially supported by NCI contract (HHSN261201200052C) through CivaTech Oncology Inc.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

A multi-beamlet analysis of the MITICA accelerator

The thermo-mechanical analysis and the mechanical design of the accelerator of MITICA (i.e. the full size prototype of the ITER neutral beam injector under construction at RFX [1]) are based on the calculation of the power deposition induced by particle impacts. This calculation is performed by EAMCC [2], a relativistic particle tracking code based on the Monte-Carlo method for describing collisions inside the accelerator, under prescribed electric and magnetic fields. The magnetic field maps are produced by 3D codes, while the electric field maps come from the 2D axi-symmetric code SLACCAD [3]. In order to perform a multi-beamlet analysis, which allows to take into account the beamlet-beamlet repulsion, and to consider other effects neglected under the hypothesis of axi-symmetric beam, a fully 3D version of the code is required. In this paper, a modified version of EAMCC, fully 3D, capable of modifying the mesh of the 3D maps and of dealing with uneven meshes is presented. A finer mesh is used just in the regions where a more detailed description of the fields is required, for a more realistic simulation. A comparison between the original code and the modified version is presented at first, as a validation of the modifications introduced in the latter. Subsequently, the main results of a single-beamlet analysis performed with the two versions of the code are shown and the differences between the 2D and the 3D simulations discussed. The last part is dedicated to the multi-beamlet simulation of the accelerator.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗

Kinetic Monte Carlo simulations of structural evolution during anneal of additively manufactured materials

Our experiments indicated that upon a post-processing anneal, an additively manufactured 316L stainless steel exhibits cubic grains rather than the conventional equiaxed grains. In this work, we have used kinetic Monte Carlo simulations to explore the origin of these cubic grains. First, we implemented a new kinetic Monte Carlo model in parallel code SPPARKS to simulate grain growth and recrystallization under a residual energy distribution. Our model incorporates physical properties and real-time, as opposed to generic properties and relative time. We further validated that our SPPARKS simulations reproduced the expected kinetic behavior of single-grain evolution. We then used the validated approach to simulate the anneal of an additively manufactured material under the same conditions used in our experiments. We found that the cubic grains can origin from a periodically varying residual energy that may be present in additively manufactured materials.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

GENIE Production Release 2.10.0

GENIE is a neutrino Monte Carlo event generator that simulates the primary interaction of a neutrino with a nuclear target, along with the subsequent propagation of the reaction products through the nuclear medium. It additionally contains libraries for fully-featured detector geometries and for managing various types of neutrino flux. This note details recent updates to GENIE, in particular, changes introduced into the newest production release, version 2.10.0.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Characterization of Filters Loaded With Reactor Strontium Carbonate - 13203

A collection of three highly radioactive filters containing reactor strontium carbonate were being prepared for disposal. All three filters were approximately characterized at the time of manufacture by gravimetric methods. The first filter had been partially emptied, and the quantity of residual activity was uncertain. Dose rate to activity modeling using the Monte-Carlo N Particle (MCNP) code was selected to confirm the gravimetric characterization of the full filters, and to fully characterize the partially emptied filter. Although dose rate to activity modeling using MCNP is a common technique, it is not often used for Bremsstrahlung-dominant materials such as reactor strontium. As a result, different MCNP modeling options were compared to determine the optimum approach. This comparison indicated that the accuracy of the results were heavily dependent on the MCNP modeling details and the location of the dose rate measurement point. The optimum model utilized a photon spectrum generated by the Oak Ridge Isotope Generation and Depletion (ORIGEN) code and dose rates measured at 30 cm. Results from the optimum model agreed with the gravimetric estimates within 15%. It was demonstrated that dose rate to activity modeling can be successful for Bremsstrahlung-dominant radioactive materials. However, the degree of success is heavily dependent on the choice of modeling techniques. (authors)

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗

Thermal Hydraulics Safety Analyses of TRIGA Reactor Upon Fuel Reconfiguration

Safety analyses of the Training, Research, Isotope, General Atomics (TRIGA) reactor at Kansas State University(KSU) is performed using thermal hydraulic simulations based on changes to reactivity or the volumetric heat generation rate due to changes in the positioning of the enriched fuel elements in the reactor core. If the reactivity or neutronics parameters are known, then they can be used to simulate the thermal energy state of the material which is crucial to assess the safety of the nuclear fuel inside a nuclear reactor. Several thermal hydraulics models and codes have been developed in the past to assess reactor safety. RELAP (Reactor Excursion and Leak Analysis Program) is one such tool widely used throughout the world for safety analyses. Although RELAP is considered a reliable tool by regulators, vendors, and operators, it lacks the numerical fidelity provided by 3-D computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models. This work involves the critical task of assessing safety of a research reactor upon fuel reconfiguration based on models developed in RELAP and comparing them with a commercially available 3-D CFD program. The TRIGA Mark-II reactor, designed by General Atomics and located at Kansas State University, is a class of small pool type inherently safe research reactor licensed to operate at steady state power of up to 1.25 MW. It has a cylindrical core measuring 0.45 meters diametrically and 0.38 meters axially positioned in a tank measuring 1.98 meters diametrically and 6.25 meters axially. It has uranium zirconium hydride (UZrH) fuel rods housed in stainless steel cladding material arranged in five concentric rings (B,C,D,E and F rings, in that order, moving outwards from the center). TRIGA fuel is nominally 20% enriched, but the reactivity of the fuel can be changed by using burnable poisons (not used at KSU), or by varying the total weight percent of uranium in the UZrH fuel meat. The TRIGA reactor is designed to be an inherently safe reactor and is designed to be cooled by natural convection. Thus it is of paramount importance to avoid the film boiling regime; failing to do so will subject the fuel to severe conditions, possibly resulting in its failure due to fuel/clad interactions. A high DNBR ratio is a primary consideration in the reactor core design and thus any modification in the core should ensure that this criteria is always met. In order to fully utilize the capabilities of KSU TRIGA reactor facility, it should be operated at its full capacity, i.e. 1.25 MW, which requires increasing the fuel loading in some of the E- and F-ring elements from 8.5% U (nominal) to 12.0% U (nominal). Only four elements are to be switched to 12% loading, causing local power peaking in these elements. The degree of power peaking to be expected in these 12%-loaded fuel elements was calculated based on a detailed MCNP (Monte Carlo N-Particle code) model of the reactor core. Some preliminary results of the calculations are presented in this paper based on changes in peaking factors and power levels. To predict reactor thermal behavior, axial changes in the peaking factors obtained from MCNP models were used to calculate volumetric energy density functions for a single channel one dimensional RELAP model and a three dimensional COMSOL model of the TRIGA MARK-II reactor. (authors)

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

PICSAR-QED: a Monte Carlo module to simulate strong-field quantum electrodynamics in particle-in-cell codes for exascale architectures

Abstract Physical scenarios where the electromagnetic fields are so strong that quantum electrodynamics (QED) plays a substantial role are one of the frontiers of contemporary plasma physics research. Investigating those scenarios requires state-of-the-art particle-in-cell (PIC) codes able to run on top high-performance computing (HPC) machines and, at the same time, able to simulate strong-field QED processes. This work presents the PICSAR-QED library, an open-source, portable implementation of a Monte Carlo module designed to provide modern PIC codes with the capability to simulate such processes, and optimized for HPC. Detailed tests and benchmarks are carried out to validate the physical models in PICSAR-QED, to study how numerical parameters affect such models, and to demonstrate its capability to run on different architectures (CPUs and GPUs). Its integration with WarpX, a state-of-the-art PIC code designed to deliver scalable performance on upcoming exascale supercomputers, is also discussed and validated against results from the existing literature.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

Monte Carlo transport model comparison with 1A GeV accelerated iron experiment: heavy-ion shielding evaluation of NASA space flight-crew foodstuff

Deep-space manned flight as a reality depends on a viable solution to the radiation problem. Both acute and chronic radiation health threats are known to exist, with solar particle events as an example of the former and galactic cosmic rays (GCR) of the latter. In this experiment Iron ions of 1A GeV are used to simulate GCR and to determine the secondary radiation field created as the GCR-like particles interact with a thick target. A NASA prepared food pantry locker was subjected to the iron beam and the secondary fluence recorded. A modified version of the Monte Carlo heavy ion transport code developed by Zeitlin at LBNL is compared with experimental fluence. The foodstuff is modeled as mixed nuts as defined by the 71st edition of the Chemical Rubber Company (CRC) Handbook of Physics and Chemistry. The results indicate a good agreement between the experimental data and the model. The agreement between model and experiment is determined using a linear fit to ordered pairs of data. The intercept is forced to zero. The slope fit is 0.825 and the R2 value is 0.429 over the resolved fluence region. The removal of an outlier, Z=14, gives values of 0.888 and 0.705 for slope and R2 respectively. c2002 COSPAR. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

NASA Discipline Radiation Health↗

EVIDENCE FOR PRE-EXISTING DUST IN THE BRIGHT TYPE IIn SN 2010jl

SN 2010jl was an extremely bright, Type IIn supernova (SN) which showed a significant infrared (IR) excess no later than 90 days after explosion. We have obtained Spitzer 3.6 and 4.5 {mu}m and JHK observations of SN 2010jl {approx}90 days post-explosion. Little to no reddening in the host galaxy indicated that the circumstellar material lost from the progenitor must lie in a torus inclined out of the plane of the sky. The likely cause of the high mid-IR flux is the reprocessing of the initial flash of the SN by pre-existing circumstellar dust. Using a three-dimensional Monte Carlo radiative-transfer code, we have estimated that between 0.03 and 0.35 M{sub sun} of dust exists in a circumstellar torus around the SN located 6 x 10{sup 17} cm away from the SN and inclined between 60 deg. and 80 deg. to the plane of the sky. On day 90, we are only seeing the illumination of approximately 5% of this torus, and expect to see an elevated IR flux from this material up until day {approx} 450. It is likely this dust was created in a luminous blue variable (LBV) like mass-loss event of more than 3 M{sub sun}, which is large but consistent with other LBV progenitors such as {eta} Carinae.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Simulation on reactor TRIGA Puspati core kinetics fueled with thorium (Th) based fuel element

In confronting global energy requirement and the search for better technologies, there is a real case for widening the range of potential variations in the design of nuclear power plants. Smaller and simpler reactors are attractive, provided they can meet safety and security standards and non-proliferation issues. On fuel cycle aspect, thorium fuel cycles produce much less plutonium and other radioactive transuranic elements than uranium fuel cycles. Although not fissile itself, Th-232 will absorb slow neutrons to produce uranium-233 ({sup 233}U), which is fissile. By introducing Thorium, the numbers of highly enriched uranium fuel element can be reduced while maintaining the core neutronic performance. This paper describes the core kinetic of a small research reactor core like TRIGA fueled with a Th filled fuel element matrix using a general purpose Monte Carlo N-Particle (MCNP) code.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗

Photon Next-Event Estimator Implementation in MCATK

A photon next-event fluence estimator at a point has been implemented in the Monte Carlo Application Toolkit (MCATK). The next-event estimator provides an expected value estimator for the flux at a point due to all source and collision events. An advantage of the next-event estimator over track-length estimators, which are normally employed in MCATK, is that flux estimates can be made in locations that have no random walk particle tracks. The next-event estimator allows users to calculate radiographs and estimate response for detectors outside of the modeled geometry. The next-event estimator is not yet accessable through the MCATK FlatAPI for C and Fortran. The next-event estimator in MCATK has been tested against MCNP6 using 5 suites of test problems. No issues were found in the MCATK implementation. One issue was found in the exclusion radius approximation in MCNP6. The theory, implementation, and testing are described in this document.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

MO-FG-CAMPUS-TeP3-05: Limitations of the Dose Weighted LET Concept for Intensity Modulated Proton Therapy in the Distal Falloff Region and Beyond

Purpose: Dose-weighted linear energy transfer (dLET) has been shown to be useful for the analysis of late effects in proton therapy. This study presents the results of the testing of the dLET concept for intensity modulated proton therapy (IMPT) with a discrete spot scanning beam system without use of an aperture or compensator (AC). Methods: IMPT (no AC) and broad beams (BB) with (AC) were simulated in the TOPAS and FLUKA code systems. Information from the independently tested Monte Carlo Damage Simulation (MCDS) was integrated into the FLUKA code systems to account for spatial variations in the RBE for protons and other light ions using an endpoint of DNA double strand break (DSB) induction. Results: The proton spectra for IMPT beams at the depths beyond the distal edge contain a tail of high energy protons up to 100 MeV. The integral from the tail is compatible with the number of 5–8 MeV protons at the tip of the Bragg peak (BP). The dose averaged energy (dEav) decreases to 7 MeV at the tip of (BP) and then increases to about 15 MeV beyond the distal edge. Neutrons produced in the nozzle are two orders of magnitude higher for BB with AC than for IMPT in low energy part of the spectra. The dLET values beyond of the distal edge of the BP are 5 times larger for the IMPT than for BB with the AC. Contrarily, negligible differences are seen in the RBE estimates for IMPT and BB with AC beyond the distal edge of the BP. Conclusion: The analysis of late effects in IMPT with a spot scanning and double scattering or scanning techniques with AC may requires both dLET and RBE as quantitative parameters to characterize effects beyond the distal edge of the BP.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

WE-DE-201-12: Thermal and Dosimetric Properties of a Ferrite-Based Thermo-Brachytherapy Seed

Purpose: The novel thermo-brachytherapy (TB) seed provides a simple means of adding hyperthermia to LDR prostate permanent implant brachytherapy. The high blood perfusion rate (BPR) within the prostate motivates the use of the ferrite and conductive outer layer design for the seed cores. We describe the results of computational analyses of the thermal properties of this ferrite-based TB seed in modelled patient-specific anatomy, as well as studies of the interseed and scatter (ISA) effect. Methods: The anatomies (including the thermophysical properties of the main tissue types) and seed distributions of 6 prostate patients who had been treated with LDR brachytherapy seeds were modelled in the finite element analysis software COMSOL, using ferrite-based TB and additional hyperthermia-only (HT-only) seeds. The resulting temperature distributions were compared to those computed for patient-specific seed distributions, but in uniform anatomy with a constant blood perfusion rate. The ISA effect was quantified in the Monte Carlo software package MCNP5. Results: Compared with temperature distributions calculated in modelled uniform tissue, temperature distributions in the patient-specific anatomy were higher and more heterogeneous. Moreover, the maximum temperature to the rectal wall was typically ∼1 °C greater for patient-specific anatomy than for uniform anatomy. The ISA effect of the TB and HT-only seeds caused a reduction in D90 similar to that found for previously-investigated NiCu-based seeds, but of a slightly smaller magnitude. Conclusion: The differences between temperature distributions computed for uniform and patient-specific anatomy for ferrite-based seeds are significant enough that heterogeneous anatomy should be considered. Both types of modelling indicate that ferrite-based seeds provide sufficiently high and uniform hyperthermia to the prostate, without excessively heating surrounding tissues. The ISA effect of these seeds is slightly less than that for the previously-presented NiCu-based seeds.

07 ISOTOPE AND RADIATION SOURCES↗

Design and testing of a boron carbide capsule for spectral-tailoring in mixed-spectrum reactors

A boron carbide capsule has been designed and used for spectral-tailoring experiments at the TRIGA reactor at Washington State Univ.. Irradiations were conducted in pulsed mode and in continuous operation for up to 4 h. A cadmium cover was used to reduce thermal heating. The neutron spectrum calculated with the Monte Carlo N-particle transport code was found to be in good agreement with reactor dosimetry measurements using the STAY'SL computer code. The neutron spectrum resembles that of a fast reactor. The design of a capsule using boron carbide fully enriched in {sup 10}B shows that it is possible to produce a neutron spectrum similar to that of {sup 235}U fission. (authors)

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗