Mechanical DesignVerification for the moderated neutron source at SARAF

Abstract

The accelerator-driven thermal neutron source (TNS) at SARAF is under the advanced design stage, to provide an accelerator-based substitution to existing neutron imaging and diffraction utilities of the IRR1 aging research reactor. A challenging task of the system design is to provide a safe and maintainable coupling of 40 MeV deuteron beam and a 200 kW power liquid metal target with a compact light-water moderator and reflector assembly. The verification process of the mechanical design is performed through Monte-Carlo simulations over the detailed CAD models. We outline the method of verification of neutron production and safety requirements over the detailed system design and highlight the advantages of this approach.