Reliability-Based Optimisation with Nuclear Data Uncertainty

Neutronics simulations are affected by two main sources of uncertainty: from the inherent statistical uncertainty of Monte Carlo methods employed to solve the neutron transport equation, and from nuclear data uncertainty. While the impact of the Monte Carlo statistical uncertainty on the performance and safety assessments of nuclear systems and devices is generally considered, the impact of nuclear data uncertainty is often ignored. The paper investigates whether nuclear data uncertainty is likely to have consequences on these assessments, finding that it needs to be considered in the design process of nuclear systems and devices. The paper also provides a methodology to do so in a computationally efficient way.