Great achievements of M. Salvatores for nuclear data adjustment study with use of integral experiments

Abstract In the design of innovative nuclear reactors such as fast reactors, the improvement of the prediction accuracies for neutronics properties is an important task. The nuclear data adjustment is a promising methodology for this issue. The idea of the nuclear data adjustment was first proposed in 1964. Toward its practical application, however, a great deal of study has been conducted over a long time. While it took about 10 years to establish the theoretical formulation, the research and development for its practical application has been conducted for more than half a century. Researches in this field are still active, and the fact suggests that the improvement of the prediction accuracies is indispensable for the development of new types of nuclear reactors. Massimo Salvatores, who passed away in March 2020, was one of the first proposers to develop the nuclear data adjustment technique, as well as one of the great contributors to its practical application. Reviewing his long-time works in this area is almost the same as reviewing the history of the nuclear data adjustment methodology. The authors intend that this review would suggest what should be done in the future toward the next development in this area. The present review consists of two parts: a) the establishment of the nuclear data adjustment methodology and b) the achievements related to practical applications. Furthermore, the former is divided into two aspects: the study on the nuclear data adjustment theory and the numerical solution for sensitivity coefficient that is requisite for the nuclear data adjustment. The latter is separated to three categories: the use of integral experimental data, the uncertainty quantification and design target accuracy evaluation, and the promotion of nuclear data covariance development.