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A multithreaded parallel upwind sweep algorithm for the SN transport equations discretized with discontinuous finite elements

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Abstract

The complex structure and strong heterogeneity of advanced nuclear reactor systems pose challenges for high-fidelity neutron-shielding calculations. Unstructured meshes exhibit strong geometric adaptability and can overcome the deficiencies of conventionally structured meshes in complex geometry modeling. A multithreaded parallel upwind sweep algorithm for SN transport was proposed to achieve a more accurate geometric description and improve the computational efficiency. The spatial variables were discretized using the standard discontinuous Galerkin finite-element method. The angular flux transmission between neighboring meshes was handled using an upwind scheme. In addition, a combination of a mesh transport sweep and angular iterations was realized using a multithreaded parallel technique. The algorithm was implemented in the 2D/3D SN transport code ThorSNIPE, and numerical evaluations were conducted using three typical benchmark problems: IAEA, Kobayashi-3i, and VENUS-3. These numerical results indicate that the multithreaded parallel upwind sweep algorithm can achieve high computational efficiency. ThorSNIPE, with a multithreaded parallel upwind sweep algorithm, has good reliability, stability, and high efficiency, making it suitable for complex shielding calculations.

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Data availability

The data that support the findings of this study are openly available in Science Data Bank at https://doi.org/10.57760/sciencedb.13607 and https://cstr.cn/31253.11.sciencedb.13607.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 201800, China

    Zhi-Wei Zong, Mao-Song Cheng, Ying-Chi Yu & Zhi-Min Dai

  2. University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China

    Mao-Song Cheng, Ying-Chi Yu & Zhi-Min Dai

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  1. Zhi-Wei Zong
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  2. Mao-Song Cheng
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection, and analysis were performed by Zhi-Wei Zong and Mao-Song Cheng. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Zhi-Wei Zong and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Mao-Song Cheng.

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This work was supported by the Strategic Pilot Science and Technology Project of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

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Zong, ZW., Cheng, MS., Yu, YC. et al. A multithreaded parallel upwind sweep algorithm for the SN transport equations discretized with discontinuous finite elements. NUCL SCI TECH 34, 200 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41365-023-01355-4

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