Test Reactor Irradiation Fuel Assembly Development in China

During the development of zirconium alloys, the irradiation in the test reactor is a critical step to comparison the irradiation properties of candidate alloys, such as corrosion, creep and irradiation growth. In this paper, a small scaled fuel assembly for test reactor irradiation is designed, which meets the needs of new zirconium alloys development. The irradiation fuel assembly (IFA) can be easily disassembled, and the test fuel rods or irradiation specimen can be easily replaced, which makes it possible to do the further post-irradiation examination in the hot cell to obtain the irradiation performance data. Now the IFA has finish fabrication and the test reactor irradiation program is planned to launch in 2017.

Investigating the Effects of Powder Mixed Electrical Discharge Machining on the Surface Quality of γ–TiAl Intermetallic

Due to outstanding properties of γ–TiAl intermetallic such as high resistance against fatigue, oxidation, corrosion, creep, dynamic vibration, high working temperature and also its application in aerospace, automotive industry and turbojet engines; in this paper, powder mixed electrical discharge machining (PMEDM) of γ–TiAl intermetallic by means of different additive powders including aluminum (Al), graphite (Gr), silicon carbide (SiC), chrome (Cr) and iron (Fe) is investigated to compare the output characteristic of surface quality and roughness. The results indicate that aluminum powder produces the best surface finish, followed by silicon carbide, graphite, chrome and iron respectively. The experimental results show that in the determined settings of input machining parameters, aluminum powder can improve the surface roughness of TiAl sample about 32%.