Experimental measurement and Monte Carlo code simulation of the gamma heating at different irradiation sites in a nuclear research reactor

Interaction of radiation with matter results in heat generation and in effect, changes in the irradiation sample’s quality. Knowledge about heat deposition within the irradiation sites can go a long way in enhancing the safety and quality of the irradiation condition. To measure such results, SCK-CEN Gamma Thermometer (GT) is used for experimentally measuring Gamma Heating (GH) during the operation of McMaster Nuclear Reactor (MNR) at three irradiation sites. In addition, Monte Carlo reactor physics code (Serpent-2) is also used for modeling the MNR in order to compare as well as validate it against experimental and operational measured data such as the multiplication factor ( k eff ) during the operational day against the actual values (unity), the experimentally measured GH values. After finding a difference of 0.45% at the beginning of the day and 0.32% at the end of the day in the k eff , a comparable GH profile was observed between the measurement and the calculation. Additionally, the average axial differences of GH results found in the beryllium irradiation site (2A), and the graphite irradiation sites (8B and 8E) are 4.71%, 10.71%, and 11.72%.