The neutron point kinetics equations describe time-dependent reactor behavior, capturing power fluctuations during operations such as control rod motion at startup and shutdown. Standard formulations are deterministic, yielding only mean population values. The actual process is stochastic: neutron density and delayed neutron precursor concentrations fluctuate randomly in time, and a system of stochastic differential equations is needed to capture this behavior accurately. A persistent numerical challenge is stiffness, which complicates implementation of stochastic solvers. This project investigates the influence of stochastic fluctuations on point kinetics results and develops a nonstiff solution approach for the stochastic neutron point kinetics equations.
Publications
[J10] A nonstiff solution for the stochastic neutron point kinetics equations
Milena Wollmann da Silva, Richard Vasques, Bardo E. J. Bodmann, Marco T. Vilhena
Annals of Nuclear Energy, vol. 97(-), 2016, pp. 47-52
[C1] Influence of stochastic moments in the solution of the neutron point kinetics equation
Milena Wollmann da Silva, Bardo E. J. Bodmann, Marco T. Vilhena, Richard Vasques
C. Constanda, A. Kirsch, Integral Methods in Science and Engineering, Springer: Birkhauser Basel, 2015, pp. 613-624
Milena Wollmann da Silva, Bardo E. J. Bodmann, Marco T. Vilhena, Richard Vasques
Proceedings of 7th INAC: International Nuclear Atlantic Conference, São Paulo, Brazil, 2015 Oct