Study of power peak migration due to insertion of control bars in a PWR reactor

This paper aims to present a study on the power distribution behavior in a PWR reactor, considering the intensity and the migration of power peaks as is the insertion of control rods in the core banks. For this, the study of the diffusion of neutrons in the reactor was adopted by computer simulation that uses the finite difference method for numerically solving the neutron diffusion equation to two energy groups in steady state and in symmetry of a fourth quarter core. We decided to add the EPRI-9R 3D benchmark thermal-hydraulic parameters of a typical power PWR. With a new configuration for the reactor, the positions of the control rods banks were also modified. Due to the new positioning of these banks in the reactor, there was intense power gradients, favoring the occurrence of critical situations and logically unconventional for operation of a nuclear reactor. However, these facts have led interesting times for the study on the power distribution behavior in the reactor, showing axial migration of power peaks and mainly the effect of the geometry of the core on the latter. Based on the distribution of power was evident the increase of the power in elements located in the central region of the reactor core and, concomitantly, the reduction in elements of its periphery. Of course, the behavior exhibited by the simulated reactor is not in agreement with that expected in an actual reactor, where the insertion of control rods banks should lead to reduced power throughout the core as evenly as possible, avoiding sharp power peaks, standardizing the burning fuel, controlling reactivity deviations and acting in reactor shutdown