Neutron transport

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Neutron transport is the study of the motions and interactions of neutrons with materials. Nuclear scientists
and engineers often need to know where neutrons are in an apparatus, what direction they are going, and how
quickly they are moving. It is commonly used to determine the behavior of nuclear reactor cores and
experimental or industrial neutron beams. Neutron transport is a type of radiative transport.

Contents
1 Background
2 Neutron Transport Equation
3 Types of neutron transport calculations
3.1 Fixed Source
3.2 Criticality
4 Computational Methods
4.1 Discretization in Deterministic Methods
4.2 Computer Codes Used In Neutron Transport
4.2.1 Probabilistic codes
4.2.2 Deterministic codes
5 See also
6 References
7 External links

Background
Neutron transport has roots in the Boltzmann equation, which was used in the 1800s to study the kinetic theory
of gases. It did not receive large-scale development until the invention of chain-reacting nuclear reactors in the
1940s. As neutron distributions came under detailed scrutiny, elegant approximations and analytic solutions
were found in simple geometries. However, as computational power has increased, numerical approaches to
neutron transport have become prevalent. Today, with massively parallel computers, neutron transport is still
under very active development in academia and research institutions throughout the world. It remains one of the
most computationally challenging problems in the world since it depends on 3-dimensions of space, time, and
the variables of energy span several decades (from fractions of meV to several MeV). Modern solutions use
either discrete-ordinates or monte-carlo methods, or even a hybrid of both.

Neutron Transport Equation

The neutron transport equation is a balance statement that conserves neutrons. Each term represents a gain or a
loss of a neutron, and the balance, in essence, claims that neutrons gained equals neutrons lost. It is formulated
as follows:[1]

Where:

Symbol

Meaning

Comments

Position vector (i.e. x,y,z)

Energy
Unit vector (solid angle) in direction of
motion
Time
Neutron velocity vector
Angular neutron flux
Amount of neutron track length in a
differential volume
about , associated
with particles of a differential energy in
about , moving in a differential solid angle
in
about , at time .
Scalar neutron flux
Amount of neutron track length in a
differential volume
about , associated
with particles of a differential energy in
about , at time .
Average number of neutrons produced per
fission (e.g., 2.43 for U-235).[2]
Probability density function for neutrons of
exit energy from all neutrons produced
by fission
Probability density function for neutrons of
exit energy from all neutrons produced
by delayed neutron precursors
Macroscopic total cross section, which
includes all possible interactions
Macroscopic fission cross section, which
includes all fission interactions in
about
Double differential scattering cross section
Characterizes scattering of a neutron from
an incident energy
in
and direction
in
to a final energy and
direction .
Number of delayed neutron precursors
Decay constant for precursor i
Total number of precursor i in
Source term

at time

Note integrating
over all angles
yields scalar
neutron flux

The transport equation can be applied to a given part of phase space (time t, energy E, location , and direction
of travel ). The first term represents the time rate of change of neutrons in the system. The second terms
describes the movement of neutrons into or out of the volume of space of interest. The third term accounts for all
neutrons that have a collision in that phase space. The first term on the right hand side is the production of
neutrons in this phase space due to fission, while the second term on the right hand side is the production of
neutrons in this phase space due to delayed neutron precursors (i.e., unstable nuclei which undergo neutron
decay). The third term on the right hand side is in-scattering, these are neutrons that enter this area of phase
space as a result of scattering interactions in another. The fourth term on the right is a generic source. The
equation is usually solved to find
, since that will allow for the calculation of reaction rates, which are of
primary interest in shielding and dosimetry studies.

Types of neutron transport calculations

Several basic types of neutron transport problems exist, depending on the type of problem being solved.

Fixed Source
A fixed source calculation involves imposing a known neutron source on a medium and determining the resulting
neutron distribution throughout the problem. This type of problem is particularly useful for shielding calculations,
where a designer would like to minimize the neutron dose outside of a shield while using the least amount of
shielding material. For instance, a spent nuclear fuel cask requires shielding calculations to determine how much
concrete and steel is needed to safely protect the truck driver who is shipping it.

Criticality
Fission is the process through which a nucleus splits into (typically two) smaller atoms. If fission is occurring, it is
often of interest to know the asymptotic behavior of the system. A reactor is called critical if the chain reaction
is self-sustaining and time-independent. If the system is not in equilibrium the asymptotic neutron distribution, or
the fundamental mode, will grow or decay exponentially over time.
Criticality calculations are used to analyze steady-state multiplying media (multiplying media can undergo fission),
such as a critical nuclear reactor. The loss terms (absorption, out-scattering, and leakage) and the source terms
(in-scatter and fission) are proportional to the neutron flux, contrasting with fixed-source problems where the
source is independent of the flux. In these calculations, the presumption of time invariance requires that neutron
production exactly equals neutron loss.
Since this criticality can only be achieved by very fine manipulations of the geometry (typically via control rods in
a reactor), it is unlikely that the modeled geometry will be truly critical. To allow some flexibility in the way
models are set up, these problems are formulated as eigenvalue problems, where one parameter is artificially
modified until criticality is reached. The most common formulations are the time-absorption and the multiplication
eigenvalues, also known as the alpha and k eigenvalues. The alpha and k are the tunable quanitites.
K-eigenvalue problems are the most common in nuclear reactor analysis. The number of neutrons produced per
fission is multiplicatively modified by the dominant eigenvalue. The resulting value of this eigenvalue reflects the
time dependence of the neutron density in a multiplying medium.
k eff < 1, subcritical: the neutron density is decreasing as time passes;
k eff = 1, critical: the neutron density remains unchanged; and
k eff > 1, supercritical: the neutron density is increasing with time.

In the case of a nuclear reactor, neutron flux and power density are proportional, hence during reactor start-up
k eff > 1, during reactor operation k eff = 1 and k eff < 1 at reactor shutdown.

Computational Methods
Both fixed-source and criticality calculations can be solved using deterministic methods or stochastic methods.
In deterministic methods the transport equation (or an approximation of it, such as diffusion theory) is solved as
a differential equation. In stochastic methods such as Monte Carlo discrete particle histories are tracked and
averaged in a random walk directed by measured interaction probabilities. Deterministic methods usually involve
multi-group approaches while Monte Carlo can work with multi-group and continuous energy cross-section
libraries. Multi-group calculations are usually iterative, because the group constants are calculated using fluxenergy profiles, which are determined as the result of the neutron transport calculation.

Discretization in Deterministic Methods

To numerically solve the transport equation using algebraic equations on a computer, the spatial, angular, energy,
and time variables must be discretized.
Spatial variables are typically discretized by simply breaking the geometry into many small regions on a
mesh. The balance can then be solved at each mesh point using finite difference or by nodal methods.
Angular variables can be discretized by discrete ordinates and weighting quadrature sets (giving rise to the
SN methods), or by functional expansion methods with the spherical harmonics (leading to the PN
methods).
Energy variables are typically discretized by the multi-group method, where each energy group represents
one constant energy. As few as 2 groups can be sufficient for some thermal reactor problems, but fast
reactor calculations may require many more.
The time variable is broken into discrete time steps, with time derivatives replaced with difference
formulas.

Computer Codes Used In Neutron Transport

Probabilistic codes
OpenMC - An MIT developed open source Monte Carlo code [3]
MCNP - A LANL developed Monte Carlo code for general radiation transport
KENO - An ORNL developed Monte Carlo code for criticality analysis
MCBEND - An ANSWERS Software Service developed Monte Carlo code for general radiation
transport
Serpent - A Finnish developed Monte Carlo neutron transport code [4]
Deterministic codes
Attila - A commercial transport code

DRAGON - An open-source lattice physics code

PHOENIX/ANC - A proprietary lattice-physics and global diffusion code suite from Westinghouse
Electric
PARTISN - A LANL developed transport code based on the discrete ordinates method
NEWT - An ORNL developed 2-D SN code
DIF3D/VARIANT - An Argonne National Laboratory developed 3-D code originally developed for
fast reactors
DENOVO - A massively parallel transport code under development by ORNL
DANTSYS
RAPTOR-M3G - A proprietary parallel radiation transport code developed by Westinghouse Electric
Company
MPACT - A parallel 3D method of characteristics code under development by the University of
Michigan
DORT - Discrete Ordinates Transport

See also
Nuclear Reactor
Boltzmann equation
TINTE
Neutron scattering

References
1. ^ Adams, Marvin L. (2009). Introduction to Nuclear Reactor Theory. Texas A&M University.
2. ^ "ENDF Libraries" (https://www-nds.iaea.org/exfor/endf.htm).
3. ^ "OpenMC" (http://mit-crpg.github.io/openmc/).
4. ^ "PSG2 Serpent" (http://montecarlo.vtt.fi/).

Lewis, E., & Miller, W. (1993). Computational Methods of Neutron Transport. American Nuclear
Society. ISBN 0-89448-452-4.
Duderstadt, J., & Hamilton, L. (1976). Nuclear Reactor Analysis. New York: Wiley. ISBN 0-47122363-8.
Marchuk, G. I., & V. I. Lebedev (1986). Numerical Methods in the Theory of Neutron Transport.
Taylor & Francis. p. 123. ISBN 978-3-7186-0182-0.

External links
LANL MCNP6 website (http://mcnp.lanl.gov/)
LANL MCNPX website (http://mcnpx.lanl.gov/)

VTT Serpent website (http://montecarlo.vtt.fi/)

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Categories: Neutron Nuclear physics
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