TERMIUM Plus®

The Government of Canada’s terminology and linguistic data bank.

BARRE COMMANDE MECANIQUE [1 record]

Record 1 2017-04-13

English

Subject field(s)
  • Nuclear Plant Safety
  • Radiation Protection
CONT

Nuclear reactors can be controlled by a mechanical control rod system for a very subtle reason. In a chain reaction there are only fractions of seconds between one fission event and the next one(s), initiated by the former. However, since a small fraction of the neutrons needed to keep the chain going are generated with a delay in the range of ten seconds the necessary response time of the control system is in the range of 0.1 seconds, thus making mechanical control possible in the first place. For plutonium the delayed neutron fraction is almost a factor of three smaller than for uranium, increasing demands on the control system.

French

Domaine(s)
  • Sûreté des centrales nucléaires
  • Radioprotection
CONT

Cœur du réacteur. [...] Les dispositifs de réglage de la réactivité montés verticalement comprennent [...] les barres de commande mécaniques qui se trouvent normalement à l'extérieur du cœur. Elles sont insérées pour compléter la réactivité négative des barres de commande à eau ordinaire ou on les fait chuter pour effectuer une réduction rapide de la puissance.

Spanish

Save record 1

Copyright notice for the TERMIUM Plus® data bank

© Public Services and Procurement Canada, 2024
TERMIUM Plus®, the Government of Canada's terminology and linguistic data bank
A product of the Translation Bureau

Features

Language Portal of Canada

Access a collection of Canadian resources on all aspects of English and French, including quizzes.

Writing tools

The Language Portal’s writing tools have a new look! Easy to consult, they give you access to a wealth of information that will help you write better in English and French.

Glossaries and vocabularies

Access Translation Bureau glossaries and vocabularies.

Date Modified: