Nuclear Decay Heat Curves: Pu239_thermal
Decay heat power fraction vs time after shutdown for nuclear reactor design and spent fuel management. Covers U-235 thermal fission, U-238 fast fission, Pu-239 thermal fission, standard PWR (45 GWd/tHM), standard BWR (45 GWd/tHM), and MOX fuel per ANSI/ANS-5.1-2014. Time range: 1 second to 10 years. Includes dominant isotope contributors and 2-sigma uncertainty.
| fuel type | time after shutdown s | decay heat fraction of operating power (dimensionless) | notes | standard | uncertainty pct 2sigma (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pu239_thermal | 1 | 0.0636 | Pu-239 thermal fission; slightly lower initial fraction than U-235 due to mass yield distribution differences; per ANS 5.1-2014 Pu-239 thermal fission table | ANS_5.1_2014 | 5 |
| Pu239_thermal | 10 | 0.052 | 10 s; Pu-239 thermal fission products; different short-lived FP yields than U-235 | ANS_5.1_2014 | 5 |
| Pu239_thermal | 100 | 0.0376 | 100 s; Pu-239 fission product decay; comparable to U-235 by 100s as individual short-lived isotopes dominate | ANS_5.1_2014 | 4 |
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