Lecture 24: Transients, Feedback, and Time-Dependent Neutronics

The students explore their data from controlling the MIT nuclear reactor. Perturbations to the criticality relations are shown, by asking hypothetical questions about changing the reactor conditions (boiling the coolant, dropping metal into the core, raising its temperature). The reactor period and point kinetics relations are introduced, which describe how fast neutrons create more neutrons, and how delayed neutrons are the key to longer-term reactor stability.

English
  • Originally Aired November 24, 2016
  • Runtime 48 minutes
  • Created December 31, 2022 by
    vga256
  • Modified December 31, 2022 by
    vga256