Radiation Transport Simulation Results Assessment Through Comparison With Reduced Complexity Analytic and Computational Models (LA-UR-20-22342)

Abstract In the past when faced with solving a non-tractable problem, scientists would make tremendous efforts to simplify these problems while preserving fundamental physics. Solutions to the simplified models provided insight into the original problem. Today, however, the affordability of high-performance computing has inverted the process for analyzing complex problems. In this paradigm, results from detailed computational scenarios can be better assessed by “building down” the complex model through simple models rooted in the fundamental or essential phenomenology. This work demonstrates how the analysis of the neutron flux spatial distribution behavior within a simulated Holtec International HI-STORM 100 spent fuel cask is enhanced through reduced complexity analytic and computational modeling. This process involves identifying features in the neutron flux spatial distribution and determining the cause of each using reduced complexity computational and/or analytic model. Ultimately, confidence in the accuracy of the original simulation result is gained through this analysis process.