The Albedo method for tri-dimensional calculations of fast reactors, with application to PEC

The Pec core simulator computer code, being now defined at Enea, is a relatively simple and inexpensive calculational model used by the reactor operator to derive the core life and the single subassemblies power and sodium flow. The diffusion module of this code will be based on the neutronic design code Citation. Here are outlined the theoretical foundations and the procedures to reduce the tri-dimensional diffusion computer time by the use of the following approximations: 1) the reactor zones far from the core are substituted by boundary conditions (albedo method); suitable flux logarithmic derivates are defined; 2) the fuel elements are represented by exagonal meshes; appropriate normalization factors are defined. With respect to the standard design procedures the computer cpu time is reduced from 90 minutes to 2 minutes (Ibm 4341/2). The errors amount to a few mk on the multiplication factor and to a few percent on the power distribution. The approximations (1) and (2) are equally important with respect to the time reduction