scope:

General

The purpose of this standard is to provide criteria for the use of nuclear data in reactor design calculations. Thus, this standard identifies and describes the specifications for developing, preparing, and documenting nuclear data sets. The nuclear data sets considered are evaluated data sets, processed continuous data sets, and processed averaged data sets. These data sets enable the analysts to generate cross-section data, which are used as input in neutronics codes.

Applications

Cross-section libraries as discussed in this standard, which are based on processed nuclear data sets, are primarily intended for use in reactor design calculations but, appropriately structured, can also be used in many other applications, such as shielding, dosimetry, and fusion studies.

The specific types of data sets considered to fall within the scope of this standard are defined more precisely in Sec. 3, "Definitions." The scope of this standard does not pertain to experimental techniques for the measurement of nuclear data or to the development of nuclear model theory. It should also be noted that the scope does not apply to a few-group collapsed, application-dependent data set, which is representative of a particular application.

Because of the generic nature of nuclear data sets that fall within the scope of this standard, these data sets are applicable to a wide range of reactor compositions, geometries, and spectra; hence, they are applicable to any reactor type.