System of Design Codes for the Computational Modelling of the Lead Cooled Fast Reactor Cores

One of the topical issues nowadays is justifying the BREST-OD-300 lead cooled pilot and demonstration reactor design. BR-1200, a competitive commercial power unit with an electric power of 1200 MW, is under design to support large scale evolution of nuclear power that meets the present day requirements for reactors of a new generation. Addressing complex tasks in searching for the best possible reactor core configurations requires a system of design codes to be developed to enable activities in physical design and justification of safety. A system of codes is proposed that combines the FACT-BR diffusion code, the MCU-BR precision codes, and the IVIS-BR thermophysical module. The system is designed for precise investigations of physical characteristics in the process of designing and providing computational support for the lead cooled fast neutron reactor operating in conditions of a closed nuclear fuel cycle. Also, codes of a new generation are being developed at the present time at IBRAE RAN to extend the capabilities of existing design codes. The paper presents a brief description of the code system. An integrated calculation has been undertaken for the BREST-OD-300 and BR-1200 reactor cores to demonstrate the capabilities of the code system.