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The six-factor formula is used in nuclear engineering to determine the multiplication of ... is the probability that a fast neutron absorption in fuel causes fission ...
The "Six-factor formula" is the neutron life-cycle balance equation, which includes six separate factors, the product of which is equal to the ratio of the number of neutrons in any generation to that of the previous one; this parameter is called the effective multiplication factor k, also denoted by K eff, where k = Є L f ρ L th f η, where ...
The effective neutron multiplication factor is most often quantified as the ratio of the rate of neutron production to the rate of neutron loss in a nuclear system, and it is often described using the six-factor formula.
Quantity (common name/s) (Common) symbol/s Defining equation SI units Dimension Number of atoms N = Number of atoms remaining at time t. N 0 = Initial number of atoms at time t = 0
Based on these calculations even an infinitely large mass of pure U-238 (or even natural Uranium) is incapable of sustaining a chain reaction with only its own neutron production, so coupling the gas-cooled fast-spectrum core with a moderated outer slow-neutron section is required, or alternatively some level of fissile enrichment is required. [2]
If k = 1, the chain reaction is critical and the neutron population will remain constant. In an infinite medium, neutrons cannot leak out of the system and the multiplication factor becomes the infinite multiplication factor, =, which is approximated by the four-factor formula.
The probability of resonance absorption is called the resonance factor, and the sum of the two factors is + =. [1] Generally, the higher the neutron energy, the lower the probability of absorption, but for some energies, called resonance energies, the resonance factor is very high. These energies depend on the properties of heavy nuclei.
Geometric buckling is a measure of neutron leakage and material buckling is a measure of the difference between neutron production and neutron absorption. [1] When nuclear fission occurs inside of a nuclear reactor, neutrons are produced. [1] These neutrons then, to state it simply, either react with the fuel in the reactor or escape from the ...