A series of small, compact critical assembly (SCCA) experiments were performed in 1962-1965 at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory Critical Experiments Facility (ORCEF) for the Medium-Power Reactor Experiment (MPRE) program. The MPRE was a stainless-steel clad, highly enriched uranium (HEU)-O2 fuelled, BeO reflected reactor design to provide electrical power to space vehicles. Cooling and heat transfer were to be achieved by boiling potassium in the reactor core and passing vapor directly through a turbine. Graphite- and beryllium-reflected assemblies were constructed at ORCEF to verify the critical mass, power distribution, and other reactor physics measurements needed to validate reactor calculations and reactor physics methods. The experimental series was broken into three parts, with the third portion of the experiments representing the beryllium-reflected measurements. The latter experiments are of interest for validating current reactor design efforts for a fission surface power reactor. The entire series has been evaluated as acceptable benchmark experiments and submitted for publication in the International Handbook of Evaluated Criticality Safety Benchmark Experiments and in the International Handbook of Evaluated Reactor Physics Benchmark Experiments.

The critical configuration of the small, compact critical assembly (SCCA) experiments performed at the Oak Ridge Critical Experiments Facility (ORCEF) in 1962-1965 have been evaluated as acceptable benchmark experiments for inclusion in the International Handbook of Evaluated Criticality Safety Benchmark Experiments. The initial intent of these experiments was to support the design of the Medium Power Reactor Experiment (MPRE) program, whose purpose was to study?power plants for the production of electrical power in space vehicles.? The third configuration in this series of experiments was a beryllium-reflected assembly of stainless-steel-clad, highly enriched uranium (HEU)-O2 fuel mockup of a potassium-cooled space power reactor. Reactivity measurements cadmium ratio spectral measurements and fission rate measurements were measured through the core and top reflector. Fuel effect worth measurements and neutron moderating and absorbing material worths were also measured in the assembly fuel region. The cadmium ratios, fission rate, and worth measurements were evaluated for inclusion in the International Handbook of Evaluated Criticality Safety Benchmark Experiments. The fuel tube effect and neutron moderating and absorbing material worth measurements are the focus of this paper. Additionally, a measurement of the worth of potassium filling the core region was performed but has not yet been evaluated Pellets of 93.15 wt.% enriched uranium dioxide (UO2) were stacked in 30.48 cm tall stainless steel fuel tubes (0.3 cm tall end caps). Each fuel tube had 26 pellets with a total mass of 295.8 g UO2 per tube. 253 tubes were arranged in 1.506-cm triangular lattice. An additional 7-tube cluster critical configuration was also measured but not used for any physics measurements. The core was surrounded on all side by a beryllium reflector. The fuel effect worths were measured by removing fuel tubes at various radius. An accident scenario was also simulated by moving outward twenty fuel rods from the periphery of the core so they were touching the core tank. The change in the system reactivity when the fuel tube(s) were removed/moved compared with the base configuration was the worth of the fuel tubes or accident scenario. The worth of neutron absorbing and moderating materials was measured by inserting material rods into the core at regular intervals or placing lids at the top of the core tank. Stainless steel 347, tungsten, niobium, polyethylene, graphite, boron carbide, aluminum and cadmium rods and/or lid worths were all measured. The change in the system reactivity when a material was inserted into the core is the worth of the material.

The baseline design for space nuclear power is a fission surface power (FSP) system: sodium-potassium (NaK) cooled, fast spectrum reactor with highly-enriched-uranium (HEU)-O2 fuel, stainless steel (SS) cladding, and beryllium reflectors with B4C control drums. Previous studies were performed to evaluate modeling capabilities and quantify uncertainties and biases associated with analysis methods and nuclear data. Comparison of Zero Power Plutonium Reactor (ZPPR)-20 benchmark experiments with the FSP design indicated that further reduction of the total design model uncertainty requires the reduction in uncertainties pertaining to beryllium and uranium cross-section data. Further comparison with three beryllium-reflected HEU-metal benchmark experiments performed at the Oak Ridge Critical Experiments Facility (ORCEF) concluded the requirement that experimental validation data have similar cross section sensitivities to those found in the FSP design. A series of critical experiments was performed at ORCEF in the 1960s to support the Medium Power Reactor Experiment (MPRE) space reactor design. The small, compact critical assembly (SCCA) experiments were graphite- or beryllium-reflected assemblies of SS-clad, HEU-O2 fuel on a vertical lift machine. All five configurations were evaluated as benchmarks. Two of the five configurations were beryllium reflected, and further evaluated using the sensitivity and uncertainty analysis capabilities of SCALE 6.1. Validation of the example FSP design model was successful in reducing the primary uncertainty constituent, the Be(n, n) reaction, from 0.28 %dk/k to 0.0004 %dk/k. Further assessment of additional reactor physics measurements performed on the SCCA experiments may serve to further validate FSP design and operation.

The benchmark evaluation of the start-up core reactor physics measurements performed with Japan's High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor, in support of the Next Generation Nuclear Plant Project and Very High Temperature Reactor Program activities at the Idaho National Laboratory, has been completed. The evaluation was performed using MCNP5 with ENDF/B-VII.0 nuclear data libraries and according to guidelines provided for inclusion in the International Reactor Physics Experiment Evaluation Project Handbook. Results provided include updated evaluation of the initial six critical core configurations (five annular and one fully-loaded). The calculated keff eigenvalues agree within 1s of the benchmark values. Reactor physics measurements that were evaluated include reactivity effects measurements such as excess reactivity during the core loading process and shutdown margins for the fully-loaded core, four isothermal temperature reactivity coefficient measurements for the fully-loaded core, and axial reaction rate measurements in the instrumentation columns of three core configurations. The calculated values agree well with the benchmark experiment measurements. Fully subcritical and warm critical configurations of the fully-loaded core were also assessed. The calculated keff eigenvalues for these two configurations also agree within 1s of the benchmark values. The reactor physics measurement data can be used in the validation and design development of future High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor systems.

Benchmark models were developed to evaluate 11 critical core configurations of the HTR-PROTEUS pebble bed experimental program. Various additional reactor physics measurements were performed as part of this program; currently only a total of 37 absorber rod worth measurements have been evaluated as acceptable benchmark experiments for Cores 4, 9, and 10. Dominant uncertainties in the experimental keff for all core configurations come from uncertainties in the 235U enrichment of the fuel, impurities in the moderator pebbles, and the density and impurity content of the radial reflector. Calculations of keff with MCNP5 and ENDF/B-VII.0 neutron nuclear data are greater than the benchmark values but within 1% and also within the 3[sigma] uncertainty, except for Core 4, which is the only randomly packed pebble configuration. Repeated calculations of keff with MCNP6.1 and ENDF/B-VII. 1 are lower than the benchmark values and within 1% (~3[sigma]) except for Cores 5 and 9, which calculate lower than the benchmark eigenvalues within 4[sigma]. The primary difference between the two nuclear data libraries is the adjustment of the absorption cross section of graphite. Simulations of the absorber rod worth measurements are within 3[sigma] of the benchmark experiment values. The complete benchmark evaluation details are available in the 2014 edition of the International Handbook of Evaluated Reactor Physics Benchmark Experiments.

In support of the SP-100 space nuclear power source program, preliminary critical benchmark experiments were performed at the ZPPR facility at ANL-W. These configurations are representative of small, fast-spectrum, BeO-reflected, liquid metal-cooled space reactor designs at a 300-kWe power level. Analyses were performed using MCNP (Monte Carlo) and TWODANT (discrete ordinates) transport codes to calculate system criticality, control worth, and power distribution. Both methods calculated eigenvalues within 0.5% of the experimental results. Internal-poison-rod worth was underpredicted and radial reflector worth was overpredicted by both codes by up to 20%. MCNP-calculated control drum worths were underestimated by approximately 8%. Good agreement with experimental values was observed for 235U fission and for 238U fission and capture rates with the best agreement occurring in the fuel region and slightly poorer predictions apparent near BeO moderator. 7 refs., 12 figs.