Pellet-Cladding Interaction of LMFBR Fuel Elements at Unsteady State: An Introduction to Computer Code ISUNE-5

1981 ◽  
Vol 103 (4) ◽  
pp. 627-636 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. M. Ma
Keyword(s):  
Reactor Core ◽  
Fatigue Cracking ◽  
Computer Code ◽  
Fuel Burnup ◽  
Fuel Pellet ◽  
Gas Release ◽  
Unsteady State ◽  
Fission Gas ◽  
Fuel Elements ◽  
Fission Gas Release

The fuel pellet-cladding interaction (PCI) of liquid-metal fast breeder reactor (LMFBR) fuel elements or fuel rods at unsteady state is analyzed and discussed based on experimental results. In the analyses, the heat generation, fuel restructuring, temperature distribution, gap conductance, irradiation swelling, irradiation creep, fuel burnup, fission gas release, fuel pellet cracking, crack healing, cladding cracking, yield failure and fracture failure of the fuel elements are taken into consideration. To improve the sintered (U,Pu)O2 fuel performance and reactor core safety at high temperature and fuel burnup, it is desirable to (a) increase and maintain the ductility of cladding material, (b) provide sufficient gap thickness and plenum space for accommodating fission gas release, (c) keep ramps-power increase rate slow and gentle, and (d) reduce the intensity and frequency of transient PCI in order to avoid intense stress fatigue cracking (SFC) and stress corrosion cracking (SCC) due to fission product compounds CsI, CdI2, Cs2Te, etc. at the inner cladding surface of the fuel elements during PCI.

Multiphysics Modeling of Thorium-Based (Th, U)O2 and (Th, Pu)O2 Fuel Performance in a Light Water Reactor

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rong Liu ◽  
Jie-Jin Cai ◽  
Wen-Zhong Zhou ◽  
Ye Wang
Keyword(s):  
Fuel Burnup ◽  
Light Water Reactor ◽  
Gas Release ◽  
Fuel Performance ◽  
Light Water ◽  
Water Reactor ◽  
Fission Gas ◽  
Fission Gas Release ◽  
Centerline Temperature ◽  
Plenum Pressure

ThO2 has been considered as a possible replacement for UO2 fuel for future generation of nuclear reactors, and thorium-based mixed oxide (Th-MOX) fuel performance in a light water reactor was investigated due to better neutronics properties and proliferation resistance compared to conventional UO2 fuel. In this study, the thermal, mechanical properties of Th0.923U0.077O2 and Th0.923Pu0.077O2 fuel were reviewed with updated properties and compared with UO2 fuel, and the corresponding fuel performance in a light water reactor under normal operation conditions were also analyzed and compared by using CAMPUS code. The Th0.923U0.077O2 fuel were found to decrease the fuel centerline temperature, while Th0.923Pu0.077O2 fuel was found to have a bit higher fuel centerline temperature than UO2 fuel at the beginning of fuel burnup, and then much lower fuel centerline than UO2 fuel at high fuel burnup. The Th0.923U0.077O2 fuel was found to have lowest fuel centerline temperature, fission gas release and plenum pressure. While the Th0.923Pu0.077O2 fuel was found to have earliest gap closure time with much less fission gas release and much lower plenum pressure compared to UO2 fuel. So the fuel performance could be expected to be improved by applying Th0.923U0.077O2 and Th0.923Pu0.077O2 fuel.

Axial Fission Gas Transport in Nuclear Fuel Rods

2009 ◽  
Vol 283-286 ◽  
pp. 262-267
Author(s):  
M.T. del Barrio ◽  
Luisen E. Herranz
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Fuel ◽  
Gas Transport ◽  
Fuel Pellet ◽  
Gas Release ◽  
Gas Mixing ◽  
Fuel Performance ◽  
Fuel Rods ◽  
Fuel Rod ◽  
Fission Gas ◽  
Fission Gas Release

Fission of fissile uranium or plutonium nucleus in nuclear fuel results in fission products. A small fraction of them are volatile and can migrate under the effect of concentration gradients to the grain boundaries of the fuel pellet. Eventually, some fission gases are released to the rod void volumes by a thermally activated process. Local transients of power generation could distort even further the already non-uniform axial power and fission gas concentration profiles in fuel rods. Most of the current fuel rod performance codes neglects these gradients and the resulting axial fission gas transport (i.e., gas mixing is considered instantaneous). Experimental evidences, however, highlight axial gas mixing as a real time-dependent process. The thermal feedback between fission gas release, gap composition and fuel temperature, make the “prompt mixing assumption” in fuel performance codes a key point to investigate due to its potential safety implications. This paper discusses the possible scenarios where axial transport can become significant. Once the scenarios are well characterized, the available database is explored and the reported models are reviewed to highlight their major advantages and shortcomings. The convection-diffusion approach is adopted to simulate the axial transport by decoupling both motion mechanisms (i.e., convection transport assumed to be instantaneous) and a stand-alone code has been developed. By using this code together with FRAPCON-3, a prospective calculation of the potential impact of axial mixing is conducted. The results show that under specific but feasible conditions, the assumption of “prompt axial mixing” could result in temperature underestimates for long periods of time. Given the coupling between fuel rod thermal state and fission gas release to the gap, fuel performance codes predictions could deviate non-conservatively. This work is framed within the CSN-CIEMAT agreement on “Thermo-Mechanical Behaviour of the Nuclear Fuel at High Burnup”.

Fission gas release in the micro-cell fuel pellet under normal operating conditions: A simplified approach based on UO2 pellet experience

2019 ◽  
Vol 527 ◽  
pp. 151801 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yang-Hyun Koo ◽  
Chang-Hwan Shin ◽  
Sang-Chae Jeon ◽  
Dong-Seok Kim ◽  
Keon-Sik Kim ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Fuel Pellet ◽  
Gas Release ◽  
Simplified Approach ◽  
Normal Operating ◽  
Fission Gas ◽  
Fission Gas Release

Pu-Rich MOX Agglomerate-by-Agglomerate Model for Fuel Pellet Burnup Analysis

2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. S. Chang
Keyword(s):  
Volume Fraction ◽  
Fuel Pellet ◽  
Gas Release ◽  
Pressurized Water Reactor ◽  
Pressurized Water ◽  
Mox Fuel ◽  
Fission Gas ◽  
Environmental Laboratory ◽  
Test Reactor ◽  
Fission Gas Release

In support of potential licensing of the mixed oxide (MOX) fuel made from weapons-grade (WG) plutonium and depleted uranium for use in United States reactors, an experiment containing WG-MOX fuel is being irradiated in the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL). The WG-MOX comprises five percent PuO2 and 95% depleted UO2. Based on the Post Irradiation Examination (PIE) observation, the volume fraction (VF) of MOX agglomerates in the fuel pellet is about 16.67%, and PuO2 concentration of 30.0 = (5 / 16.67 × 100) wt% in the agglomerate. A pressurized water reactor (PWR) unit WG-MOX lattice with Agglomerate-by-Agglomerate Fuel (AbAF) modeling has been developed. The effect of the irregular agglomerate distribution can be addressed through the use of the Monte Carlo AbAF model. The AbAF-calculated cumulative ratio of AGglomerate burnup to U-MAtrix burnup (AG/MA) is 9.17 at the beginning of life (BOL), and decreases to 2.88 at 50 GWd/t. The MCNP-AbAF-calculated results can be used to adjust the parameters in the MOX fuel fission gas release modeling.

Fission Gas Release from Irradiated Uranium-Plutonium Nitride Fuel

Atomic Energy ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 129 (2) ◽  
pp. 103-107
Author(s):  
A. F. Grachev ◽  
L. M. Zabud’ko ◽  
M. V. Skupov ◽  
F. N. Kryukov ◽  
V. G. Teplov ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gas Release ◽  
Nitride Fuel ◽  
Fission Gas ◽  
Uranium Plutonium ◽  
Fission Gas Release

Fission gas release and swelling in uranium–plutonium mixed nitride fuels

2004 ◽  
Vol 327 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 77-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kosuke Tanaka ◽  
Koji Maeda ◽  
Kozo Katsuyama ◽  
Masaki Inoue ◽  
Takashi Iwai ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gas Release ◽  
Fission Gas ◽  
Nitride Fuels ◽  
Uranium Plutonium ◽  
Fission Gas Release

The role of bubbles in fission gas release from uranium dioxide

1969 ◽  
Vol 30 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 170-178 ◽  
Author(s):  
R.M. Cornell ◽  
M.V. Speight ◽  
B.C. Masters
Keyword(s):  
Uranium Dioxide ◽  
Gas Release ◽  
Fission Gas ◽  
Fission Gas Release
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