NRE 4206

Laboratory 4b
Material Buckling Measurement in a Natural Uranium Graphite Assembly
February 18th, 20th and 21st, 2013
Taken from a write-up by K. C. Ruzich in ANL-6990 and from
Glasstone and Edlund, The Elements of Nuclear Reactor Theory, 1952.
The material buckling of a graphite and natural-uranium subcritical assembly, with a xed composition and
lattice spacing, is determined by measuring the spatial distribution of the neutron ux. The assembly is in a
steady-state condition using neutron sources placed in the assembly pedestal.
I. INTRODUCTION
The exponential experiment historically has been used to
study optimum fuel arrangements for heterogeneous nuclear
reactors. The assembly studied cannot sustain a neutron-chain
reaction because of its small size, i.e. the leakage rate of
neutrons is too large. Since the assembly is subcritical, neu-
trons must be supplied to the system from an external neutron
source to establish a steady-state neutron spatial distribution.
In general such an assembly may be constructed in either rect-
angular or cylindrical geometry. The neutron source is placed
belowthe structure and the source neutrons pass through mod-
erating material before entering the assembly. This arrange-
ment gives rise to the condition that the neutron source can
be represented by a nite plane source of thermal neutrons
located at the bottom face of the assembly. The neutron dis-
tribution in the subcritical system in the direction perpendic-
ular to the plane source is described by an exponential. The
measurement of the decay constant of this exponential will
yield a parameter related to the critical volume of the assem-
bly. The parameter involved is called the material buckling of
the assembly and is a function of the composition and lattice
arrangement of fuel and moderator in the system.
The assembly used in this experiment is a natural-uranium,
graphite system which we have previously used. High-energy
neutrons are moderated to thermal velocities in the carbon
pedestal before entering the assembly. The natural uranium
fuel in metallic form is loaded in the graphite assembly. Spa-
tial neutron-distribution measurements are made in the verti-
cal and radial directions using thermal neutron activation foils.
II. THEORY
A. General Theory
The model chosen to describe the neutron behavior in the
assembly is taken from basic diusion theory. The production
rate of neutrons in a homogeneous volume element minus the
leakage rate from the element and the absorption rate occur-
ring within the elements must be equal to the change in neu-
tron density with time. Hence, the monoenergetic diusion
equation may be written as
D
2
(r, t)
.,,.
neutrons leaking out

a
(r, t)
.,,.
neutrons absorbed
+k
a
phi(r, t) + S (r)
.,,.
neutrons produced
=
1
v
(r, t)
t
.,,.
time rate of change of neutrons
(1)
where
D = diusion coecient of medium

2
= Laplacian operator
(r, t) = thermal neutron ux at position r and time t

a
=macroscopic absorption cross section of medium
k=innite reproduction factor of medium
S(r)=external source contribution at r
v=mono-velocity of thermal neutrons.
The spatial distribution of (r, t) can be experimentally de-
termined. This measurement can then be compared with solu-
tions of equation (1) to obtain the characteristic parameters of
the system.
In order to solve equation (1), we must separate the vari-
ables in space and time. We assume (r, t) = (r)T(t). Since
the homogeneous time-independent portion of Eqn. (1) is the
Laplacian:

2
(r) + B
2
(r) = 0, (2)
and the general solution to equation (2) will be a linear com-
bination of all possible solutions:
(r, t) =

n
A
n

n
(r)T
n
(t). (3)
The source term is then expanded in a series of orthogonal
functions:
S (r) =

n
S
n

n
(r) (4)
where
n
are eigenfunctions of equation (2) corresponding to
eigenvalues B
n
. Inserting equations (4) and (3) into equation
(1) and integrating, one obtains
2
(r, t) =

n
_

_
A
n

n
(r)e
[(k
e f f
)
n
1](t/l
n
)
+
S
n

a
(1 + L
2
B
2
n
)
_
1 (k
e f f
)
n
_
_

_
(5)
where
(k
e f f
)
n
=
k
1+L
2
B
2
n
= eective reproduction factor for n
th
mode

1
1+L
2
B
2
n
= the nonleakage probability of this mode
L
2
= D/
a
= diusion length
l
n
=
l
0
1+L
2
B
2
n
=eective neutron lifetime for n
th
mode
l
0
= 1/(v
a
)=the neutron lifetime in an innite
medium.
The solution for (r, t) indicates that as long as all the re-
production factors are less than one, the assembly will be sub-
critical and the only way to maintain a steady-state condition
is to have an external source present. The steady-state value
is represented by the second term in the right side of equa-
tion (5). If the assembly of fuel and moderator is increased
in size, the B
n
will decrease and a point eventually will be
reached when the lowest B
n
, namely B
1
, reaches a value such
that (k
e f f
)
1
is exactly unity. Since B
1
is the lowest eigenvalue,
(k
e f f
)
1
will be larger than all other possible values, (k
e f f
)
n
.
With the source removed, the second term in equation (5) is
zero, the system would be self-sustaining on the lowest eigen-
value, (k
e f f
)
1
=1, and the higher modes would decay to zero,
since all other (k
e f f
)
n
s are less than one.
The critical equation which represents the condition for a
self-sustaining chain reaction is
k
e f f
1
1 + L
2
B
2
m
= 1 (6)
as seen from equation (5). The quantity B
m
is dened from
this equation and is called the material buckling, since it is
a function of the multiplying medium only. The geometrical
buckling, B
1
= B
g
, is the lowest eigenvalue that results from
solving equation (2). If the geometrical buckling of the sys-
tem equals the material buckling, the system is in a critical
condition.
B. Rectangular Core
Conrmation of the results given by the procedure de-
scribed above is obtained by means of what is called the expo-
nential pile experiment. This involves construction of a sub-
critical assembly with exactly the same lattice as a proposed
reactor but appreciably smaller. In a system of this type, a
self-sustaining ssion chain reaction will, of course, not be
possible, but if an extraneous source is present, a steady-state
neutron distribution can be realized. The ux distribution in
such a system does not satisfy the wave equation for a critical
reactor. Nevertheless, if the subcritical assembly is relatively
large, as would be the case for a natural uranium system, the
thermal neutron ux distribution, at a distance from bound-
aries and from the extraneous source, can be represented fairly
closely by:

2
+ B
2
m
= 0, (7)
where B
2
m
is the material buckling of the given fuel-
moderator system. Strictly speaking, equation (7) applies to
a homogeneous system. In a heterogeneous assembly, there
will be local irregularities due to the lattice structure, but the
wave equation will nevertheless give the large-scale or over-
all neutron distribution.
The purpose of the exponential experiment is to determine
the material buckling from measurements of the thermal ux
distribution in the appropriate regions of a moderately large
subcritical assembly in which steady state neutron ux is
maintained by an extraneous neutron source. The critical di-
mensions of a reactor having the same composition and struc-
ture as the experimental assembly can then be obtained from
the expression for the geometric buckling.
Ideally, in the exponential arrangement, a portion of the re-
actor is constructed, with linear dimensions of the order of
one-third or so of the critical reactor, on a base from which
a supply of thermal neutrons emerges. The latter may con-
sist of a structure of graphite, a neutron source embedded in
it or it may be part of an existing thermal reactor. In the case
of a cubic or rectangular block reactor, the experimental sys-
tem would be represented schematically as in Figure 1, the
origin of the coordinates being taken at the center of the bot-
tom face of the pile proper. The assembly has a number of
vertical holes or tubes parallel to and near the z-axis of the
coordinate system shown. In these holes indium foils or neu-
tron counters can be placed to measure neutron ux at various
distances from the bottom face.
FIG. 1. Assembly for exponential experiment in rectangular block
3
To solve equation (7), the thermal ux is written as the
product of the functions X(x), Y(y), Z(z) of the respective spa-
tial coordinates x, y, z. This leads to the expression:
1
X

d
2
X
dx
2
+
1
Y

d
2
Y
dy
2
+
1
Z

d
2
Z
dz
2
+ B
2
m
= 0.
The terms in X, Y, Z may then be set equal to the constants

2
,
2
, and
2
, respectively, so that:

2
+
2

2
= B
2
m
(8)
By the use of the ux symmetry condition, it can be shown
that
2
,
2
are positive quantities. Taking into account the
usual boundary conditions, it is found that

2
=
_
m
a
_
2

2
=
_
n
b
_
2
X
m
= A
m
cos
mx
a
Y
n
= C
n
cos
ny
b
(9)
where A
m
and C
n
are constants, and m and n are odd in-
tegers. The smallest eigenvalues of
2
and
2
are those for
which m=1 and n=1, respectively, so that

2
=
_

a
_
2

2
=
_

b
_
2
(10)
Although these results are formally similar to those ob-
tained in connection with a rectangular block reactor, it should
be noted that the dimensions a and b of the block in the expo-
nential pile experiment are considerably less than in the crit-
ical reactor. Hence,
2
and
2
in Eqn. (10) are much greater
than the corresponding components of the critical geometric
buckling. In fact, in the exponential pile experiment, the di-
mensions of a and b are such that
2
and
2
will exceed B
2
m
.
Consequently, it follows from Eqn. (8) that
2
is also positive.
Hence,
Z(z) = Fsinh
_
(c z)
_
(11)
Upon inserting the values for
2
and
2
into Eqn. (8), it
follows that:

2
mn
=
_
m
a
_
2
+
_
n
b
_
2
B
2
m
(12)
It is apparent that for each pair of m and n values, there will
be a denite value of , which may be indicated by
mn
. Thus,
from Eqn. (11), the general solution for Z(z) may be written
as:
Z
mn
= F
mn
sinh
_

mn
(c z)
_
(13)
The simplest solution of the wave equation then is a product
of X(x), Y(y), Z(z), and the general solution is:
=

m=1

n=1
A
mn
cos
_
mx
a
_
cos
_
my
b
_
sinh
_

mn
(c z)
_
(14)
where the arbitrary constants A
mj
, C
nj
, and F
mn
have been
combined into A
mn
. In order to evaluate this constant, use
must be made of the source condition. The source may be
regarded as a point source of fast neutrons lying on the z-axis
at some distance below the origin in Figure 1. Then by solving
the age equation for the slowing down density, evaluated at
thermal energies, and combining with the diusion treatment,
the thermal neutron source term in the (x, y)-plane through
the origin could be determined. This could be expanded into
a series of orthogonal functions. It would then be found that,
at a distance of about two diusion lengths from the source,
the only term which makes any appreciable contribution to the
neutron ux is the fundamental mode, i.e., m = 1 and n = 1.
Hence, if the bottom of the experimental block, i.e., the
x, y-plane through the origin, is about 100 cm or so from a
fast neutron source, embedded in graphite, the contributions
of the harmonic terms to the ux in the pile can be neglected.
Consequently, under these conditions, it is not necessary to
make the source calculations described above, but merely to
write Eqn. (14) in the form:
= A
11
cos
_
x
a
_
cos
_
y
b
_
sinh
_
(c z)
_
for z > 0. Since there is only one value of the constant A
mn
which need be considered, there is, similarly, only one value
of F
mn
and one of
mn
. The thermal ux distribution along any
line parallel to the z-axis* is, therefore, given by the simplied
form of Eqn. (13), namely
(z) = Fsinh
_
(c z)
_
= Ce

2
_
1 e
2(cz)
_
(15)
where e
C
has been included in the constant C.
Provided z does not approach c, i.e. at distances not too
near the top of the rectangular block, the term in the brackets
in Eqn. (16) is not very dierent from unity so:
(z) = Ce
z
(16)
This means that, in the experimental arrangement under
consideration, along any line parallel to the z-axis, the ther-
mal neutron ux falls o in an (approximately) exponential
manner. For this reason, the system has been called an ex-
ponential pile. The relaxation length of the neutrons, i.e., the
distance within which the neutron ux falls o by a factor of
e in the z-direction, is here seen to be 1/.
In the foregoing, it has been assumed that for z > 0, i.e.
within the pile itself, the neutrons coming from the source
have virtually all been thermalized in their passage through
the graphite base. This will be essentially true, provided the
fast neutron source is at a distance from the z = 0 plane of at
least two or three slowing down lengths, i.e. more than 2

or 3

where is the Fermi Age[? ] of the thermal neu-

trons. Since the value of for thermal neutrons in graphite is
4
about 300 cm, the minimum distance for virtually complete
thermalization is about 50 cm. An experimental check on this
assumption can be made by measuring the cadmium ratio at
various points along the z-axis. If there is no appreciable slow-
ing down for z > 0, the cadmium ratio will be constant.
If the uxes (z) at various distances z in the same verti-
cal line near the control axis of the assembly are determined
experimentally, e.g., by the irradiation of indium foil and sub-
sequent determination of the (saturation) beta activity, then
the plot of ln(z), or a quantity proportional to ln(z) versus z
should yield a straight line of slope (-). Actually, the plot will
be linear only for points which are not too near the base nor
too close to the top of the pile. In the former case higher har-
monics, i.e., terms for which m or n, or both, are greater than
unity, will make some contribution to the ux, and Eqn.(17)
will not be exact. If necessary, corrections can be made for
these harmonics, from measurements of the lateral distribu-
tion of the ux in the (z, y)-plane (see Section C and the Nu-
cleonics articles on webct).
The deviations from linearity of points representing mea-
surements made near the top of the block are due to the ne-
glect of the end correction term, 1 e
2(cz)
, in Eqn. (16).
The experimental uxes can be corrected by dividing by this
quantity, which can be evaluated by the procedure described
in connection with the measurement of diusion length from
the best linear plot of the corrected values of ln(z) against the
vertical distance z, the slope, equal to -, is obtained. Since
this is really
11
, it follows from Eqn. (12) that
_

a
_
2
+
_

b
_
2

2
= B
2
m
(17)
In this case a and b are the extrapolated dimensions of the
experimental block in the x- and y-directions, which may be
obtained by adding 2 x 0.71
tr
to the geometrical dimensions.
The actual values may be determined by measuring the lat-
eral variation of the neutron ux and nding where it would
become zero. Alternatively, the dierence between the extrap-
olated height, c, determined above, and the measured height
may be used as a basis for applying a correction to the geomet-
rical dimensions. Thus, with a, b and known, the material
buckling of the multiplying medium constituting the assem-
bly can be calculated. The dimensions of the critical reactor
can then be obtained since B
2
m
is equal to B
2
0
for the critical
system.
C. Measurements and Calculations of Reactor Parameters
The one-group (all thermal) model chosen to describe neu-
tron behavior in a multiplying system yields the following
critical equation:
k

1 + L
2
B
2
m
= 1 (18)
This model is only an approximation, since neutrons which
are produced in the system are born as fast neutrons in the
ssion process. These neutrons then migrate through the
medium making collisions with the atoms present in the sys-
tem. During this slowing-down process some of the neutrons
will leak out of the system. The distribution of the neutrons
in the system during the slowing-down process will determine
the probability of loss by leakage. A more exact model of the
system should therefore include this slowing-down process.
The approach which is usually taken for a bare system is to
assume that the slowing-down neutron density is everywhere
proportional to the thermal-neutron ux. It can be shown that
the critical equation then becomes
k

L
f
1 + L
2
B
2
= 1 (19)
where L
f
is the fast non-leakage probability, which is a func-
tion of the bucking of the assembly. Below is a list of fast non-
leakage probabilities based on specic slowing-down models:
1. Fermi continuous slowing-down model (for heavy mod-
erating materials):
L
f
= e
B
2

where tau is the neutron age from ssion energies to

the thermal energy;
2. Two-group model:
L
f
=
1
1 + L
2
B
2
where L
2
f
, the square of the fast diusion length, equals
1/6 of the mean square distance a neutron travels before
becoming thermal;
3. Multigroup of models:
L
f
=
1
(1 + L
2
1
B
2
)(1 + L
2
2
B
2
)(1 + L
2
3
B
2
) . . .
, where L
i
is the fast diusion length for neutrons in the
i
th
energy group before they are slowed down into the
energy group (i + 1).
The two-group model is a fairly good representation of the
critical equation for a graphite system. Hence, the critical
equation can be written as
k

(1 + L
2
B
2
)(1 + L
2
f
B
2
)
= 1 (20)
In the exponential experiment the material buckling for a
critical reactor of the same composition and structure was
measured. Calculations can now be made to determine L, L
f
,
or k if any two of these parameters are known. The innite
reproduction factor, k

, is a function of the material of which

the reactor is made and equals pf , as given by the four-
factor formula. Here,
=neutrons produced/neutrons absorbed in fuel
=fast ssion factor
5
p=resonance escape probability, the fraction of neu-
trons escaping parasitic capture while slowing down
f =thermal utilization, the fraction of thermal neutrons
absorbed in fuel.
The calculation of these factors for the reactor involved is
by no means simple because the reactor is a heterogeneous
system. However, you can compute a value from MCNP k-
code computations.
Experimentally, the exponential pile can be used to ob-
tain the fast diusion length L
f
; the thermal diusion length
L; and the average macroscopic absorption cross section in
the specic lattice of fuel and moderator. The fast diusion
length (age) of ssion neutrons is found by comparing ma-
terial buckling with and without a uniformly disposed poison
such as boron. The diusion length is determined by substitut-
ing nonmultiplying fuel elements with the same scattering and
absorption properties as the fuel. This procedure makes the
assembly a sigma pile, which is normally used for measure-
ments of thermal diusion length. The average macroscopic
absorption cross section,

a
, of the assembly can be measured
by a simple cadmium ratio measurement of an activation de-
tector. If the response of the detector is known, the cadmium
ratio measurement yields the ratio of the thermal-neutron ux
to the slowing-down neutron ux per lne interval. Using a
variation of the basic neutron-balance equation [equation (1)],

a
can be determined.
III. APPARATUS
A. Source
As is clear from the theoretical outline, an exponential as-
sembly requires an external source of neutrons to maintain a
steady state. Ideally, the energy distribution of these source
neutrons should be equivalent to the neutron spectrum of the
lattice. This is approximately realized in practice by the intro-
duction of thermal neutrons into the assembly.
B. Fuel Assemblies
The basic fuel component is a spent natural uranium cylin-
drical slug, 1-3/16 outside diameter, 7/16 inside diameter,
and 8-3/8 long. These slugs are clad in aluminum of 0.04
thickness.
C. Neutron Detectors
The detectors used to measure the spatial neutron distribu-
tion in the graphite assembly are indium foils.
The spatial neutron distribution in the graphite assembly
will also be measured with a
3
He detector.
IV. PROCEDURE
The initial part of the experimental procedure will include
a visual inspection of the experimental assembly and a short
discussion describing the apparatus which will be used in the
experiment. Questions regarding the experimental arrange-
ment will be answered by the instructor at this time.
The procedure for measuring the horizontal and vertical
neutron ux distribution follows: The measurements are made
with indium foils. Irradiate the foils to saturated activity.
Remove and count the indium foils noting the position and
weight of each foil.
V. RESULTS
The results of this part of Experiment 4 will include the
following:
1. A linear plot of the lateral neutron ux distribution.
2. A semilog plot of the vertical neutron-ux distribution.
3. The calculations and resulting material buckling of the
exponential assembly.
4. The experimental neutron-ux distribution normalized
as suggested will be tted to the theoretical distributions
given below:
Z(z
1
) = Z(z
0
)e
(z
1
z
0
)
(21)
where Z(z
0
) equal unity. The constants and will be
used to calculate the material buckling: B
2
m
=
2
+
2

2
.
5. The minimum critical volume for a reactor of the same
composition and lattice arrangement as the exponential
assembly is calculated.
VI. ANALYSIS AND CONCLUSIONS
A comparison of the result of experimental measurement of
material buckling can be made with a calculated value. Any
discrepancies between these two results should be analyzed to
determine the possible sources of error. Comments regarding
the experiment both from theoretical and experimental stand-
points are required. This experiment was developed for the
purpose of acquainting students with the use of an exponen-
tial assembly to determine certain reactor parameters. The
theoretical model chosen to describe the experiment should
familiarize the students with basic diusion theory.
VII. DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Describe an exponential assembly. How does this sys-
tem dier from a critical reactor?
6
2. Describe an exponential experiment for determining
the material buckling of a certain multiplying medium.
What basic theoretical model can be used to describe
the system in question? Dene the parameters used in
this theoretical model.
3. If the exponential experiment yields a material buckling
which is negative, what can be said about the multiply-
ing system and why?
4. If the dimensions of an exponential assembly are in-
creased, does the result of measurement of material
buckling increase, decrease, or remain constant?
5. If the pitch between the natural uranium rods were in-
creased what would happen to the material buckling
value?
6. What boundary conditions must prevail for the expo-
nential experiment?
7. What is the critical-reactor equation? What conditions
must prevail to make a multiplying medium of a given
size and geometry critical?
8. The extrapolated height, width, and length of the ex-
ponential assembly used in this experiment should be
calculated. The eective reproduction factor of the fun-
damental mode of the wave equation is
k
e f f
=
k
(1 L
2
B
2
1
)(1 + L
2
1
B
2
1
)
= 1 (22)
How subcritical is the system in question?
9. What type of neutron source is used in this experi-
ment to obtain a steady-state condition in the assembly?
What other types of sources could be used?
10. What is a heterogeneous reactor? Why must this type
of systembe treated dierently froma homogenous sys-
tem?
VIII. ASSIGNMENT
Write up laboratories 4a and 4b in a full report format (10
pages max) presenting and analyzing all the data and ques-
tions from the two labs.
1. A. B. Smith, An Experimental Study of Heterogeneous Expo-
nential Assemblies, International School of Nuclear Science and
Engineering, Argonne National Laboratory, June, 1955.
2. A. B. Smith, Subcritical Reactor is Useful for Research and
Training, Nucleonics 14, No. 11, p. 81 1956.
3. E. Cohen, et al., Exponential Experiments on D2O-Uranium
Lattices, Proc. Intl. Conf. On Peaceful Uses of Atomic Energy,
Geneva, Switzerland, 5, 268, 1956.
4. A. H. Barnes, et al., Reactor Science and Technology, TID-72,
Vol. 1, No. 2, 1951.
5. S. Glasstone and M. Edlund, Elements of Nuclear Reactor
Theory, D. Van Nostrand Co., Inc., New York, 1952.
6. A. M. Weinberg and E. P. Wigner, The Physics Theory of Neu-
tron Chain Reactors, The University of Chicago Press, Chicago,
IL, 1958.