Book Description

There are many reports about nodal methods for static and dynamic problems, but not many for the nonlinear feedback cases. In this paper, a class of nodal methods called ''mathematical nodal method'' (MNM) is studied with the temperature feedback problems. The spatially complex domain of the problem is represented as a collection of geometrically simple subdomains of the size of fuel assemblies called nodes. Over each node, the time dependent coefficients of the neutron flux, precursor concentrations, fuel and coolant temperatures are the surface and volume weighted average (moment) values of the unknown solutions; the space dependent basis functions are a combination of Legendre polynomials. If the material parameters are a linear function of fuel and coolant temperatures, the coupled equations can be put in a dimensionless form and a system of time dependent ordinary differential equations containing nonlinear feedback terms is obtained. These nonlinear feedback terms are updated at each time step during the time iteration process. Results of some benchmark problems are included in this report.