The reactor considered in this study is the Pennsylvania State University TRIGA Reactor (PSTR) with a modification to include a rotating reactivity pulsing mechanism rather than a pneumatically operated transient reactivity rod. The reactivity pulsing mechanism was proposed by Kenney (17), independent of a similar design proposed by Whittemore (37). The reactivity pulse is produced by absorber material mounted on a circular disk rotating in the centerline plane of the reactor. The disk is assumed to have a radius equal to the radius of the reactor core and to extend into the reactor so that the disk edge is tangent to the reactor centerline. In order to study the pulsed behavior of the PSTR, a digital computer program was developed which may have practical use beyond this report. (from the introduction)

This thesis document was issued under the authority of another institution, not NPS. At the time it was written, a copy was added to the NPS Library collection for reasons not now known. It has been included in the digital archive for its historical value to NPS. Not believed to be a CIVINS (Civilian Institutions) title.

http://archive.org/details/modulationofreac1094515096

Naval Postgraduate Education Program