Plant inherent control testing in EBR-II

A testing program is being conducted in EBR-II to demonstrate passive, inherent reactor protection and control. Data obtained from tests have indicated that the reactor power can be controlled over a large range by the primary coolant flow, secondary coolant flow, and the turbine/generator load. Reactor safety could then be based on inherent safe characteristics of the plant rather than the complicated reactor shutdown system. A Plant Inherent Control Testing (PICT) program is being developed in EBR-II to investigate inherent control concepts for LMR's. The reactor power will be controlled between 40 and 100% power with the primary coolant pumps, the secondary coolant pumps, and the turbine admission valve. The thermal-hydraulic-neutronic system analysis code NATDEMO was used for the pretest predictions of the EBR-II plant response. This paper presents the results of this analysis.