Use of shielding integral benchmark archive and database for nucleardata validation

Shielding benchmarks were extensively used for the validation and improvement of nuclear data since many years. Recent evaluations however mostly rely on the validation using critical benchmarks, which can introduce biases and compensation effects. A new Working Party on International Nuclear Data Evaluation Co-operation Subgroup 47 (WPEC SG47) entitled "Use of Shielding Integral Benchmark Archive and Database for Nuclear Data Validation" was started in June 2019 with the objective to promote further development and use of Shielding Integral Benchmark Archive and Database (SINBAD) and thus contribute to the diversification of the nuclear data validation practice by including more extensively other types of integral measurements, such as shielding benchmarks, in the validation and evaluation procedure. Use of shielding benchmarks is expected to provide a wider-scope test of the performance of the evaluated nuclear data and would ultimately contribute to a production of more general-purpose cross-section evaluations.