Real-time reactor coolant system boron concentration monitor utilizing an ultrasonic spectroscpopy system

A real-time method of monitoring a boron concentration of a coolant within a piping serving a primary loop of a nuclear reactor comprising:

• transmitting an acoustic signal through the coolant within the piping;
• receiving the transmitted acoustic signal after the transmitted acoustic signal has passed through at least a portion of the coolant within the piping, at a known distance between a transmitter structured to transmit the acoustic signal and a receiver configured to receive the transmitted acoustic signal;
• comparing the received acoustic signal to the transmitted acoustic signal to determine an attenuation of the transmitted acoustic signal through the coolant within the piping;
• and
• determining the boron concentration of the coolant within the piping from the attenuation of the transmitted signal utilizing equation 1:
• am
• 1
• =
• A
• 1
• ⁢
• P
• 1
• ⁢
• f
• 1
• ⁢
• f
• 2
• f
• 1
• 2
• +
• f
• 2
• equation
• ⁢
• ⁢
• 1
• wherein
• am1 is an absorption coefficient based on the attenuation of the transmitted acoustic signal;
• A
• 1
• =
• 8
• .
• 8
• ⁢
• 6
• c
• ×
• 10
• (
• 0
• .
• 7
• ⁢
• 8
• ⁢
• pH
• -
• [
• [
• 1
• ]
• ]
• ⁢
• 5
• )
• c is a sound speed,
• P1 is a constant,
• f1=2.8(S/35)0.5×10([[1]]4−1245/[[8]]θ)),
• θ=273+T,
• f is a frequency of the transmitted acoustic signal, and
• pH is a calculated pH of the coolant, and
• S is a salinity (%) of the coolant, and
• T is a temperature (° C.) of the coolant, and
• wherein the boron concentration of the coolant is determined based on converting the calculated pH of the coolant to the boron concentration of the coolant.