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| Program name | Package id | Status | Status date |
|---|---|---|---|
| IFPE/IFA-514/565 | NEA-1778/03 | Arrived | 16-JAN-2023 |
Machines used:
| Package ID | Orig. computer | Test computer |
|---|---|---|
| NEA-1778/03 | Many Computers |
IFA-514/565 irradiation tests were performed in Halden Reactor (HBWR) in Norway to study the irradiation performance of LWR MOX fuels. The fuel specifications for this irradiation test were decided in accordance with those of BWR 8 x 8 fuels, and plutonium content of MOX fuels was set to be 5.8 wt.%. Six MOX fuels rods, of which parameters were pellet geometry (solid or annular) and surface roughness (grinded or as-sintered), were irradiated to the assembly average burn-up of ~ 45 GWd/tMOX, and the instrument data during irradiation, i.e. cladding elongation, fuel stack elongation, fuel center temperature, and rod inner pressure, were obtained. The irradiation for three of six fuel rods irradiated in IFA-514 irradiation tests were continued to assembly average burn-up of ~ 56 GWd/tMOX in IFA-565 irradiation tests. The post-irradiation examinations were performed in Kjeller Institute in Norway, and provided the MOX fuel behavior.
In IFA-514/565 irradiation tests, the irradiation of IFA-565 was continued with three of six fuel rods irradiated in IFA-514 irradiation test.
Each fuel rod has one or two kinds of instruments of rod inner pressure (PF), fuel center temperature (TF), fuel stack elongation (EF), and cladding elongation (EC).
IFA-514 irradiation was started on 10 July in 1979, and completed on 19 November in 1988. The equivalent full power day (EFPD) in IFA-514 irradiation was 2,049 days, and the burn-up reached ~ 45 GWd/tMOX.
Three rods irradiated in IFA-514, i.e. rod-3, rod-4, and rod-6, were continuously irradiated as IFA-565 from November 1990 to October 1993.
The post-irradiation examination after IFA-514 irradiation test provided the following results:
- No remarkable corrosion and deformation was observed on the irradiated fuel rods.
- The averaged irradiation growth was 0.13%, no nodular corrosion was observed, and the maximum thickness of oxide layer was ~ 60 micrometre.
- The FP gas release rate was ~ 21%.
The irradiation for three of six fuel rods irradiated in IFA-514 irradiation tests were continued to the assembly average burn-up of ~ 56 GWd/t in IFA-565 irradiation tests, and the results of this irradiation test were as follows:
- No remarkable corrosion and deformation was observed on the irradiated fuel rods.
- The FP gas release behavior of LWR MOX fuels was similar to that of BWR UO2 and ATR MOX fuels, and no difference was confirmed in the FP gas release behavior. Also FP gas release rate of annular pellets (~ 13%) was lower than that of solid ones (~ 16%).
- No remarkable difference in the effect of pellet geometry, i.e. solid and annular, on PCMI behavior was observed in any fuel rod from the instrument data of fuel stack elongation and the result of ceramography. However, the reduction of cladding diameter change in pellet geometry is expected since the cladding diameter change of annular fuel rods was less than that of solid ones.
- The disappearance of as-fabricated granular boundaries during irradiation is expected to cause the reduction of pellet swelling deformation.
- The cladding elongation was ~0.15%, and the irradiation growth behavior was almost similar to that of BWR U02 and ATR MOX fuel rods.
Keywords: MOX, boiling water reactor, elongation, fuel irradiation, light-water reactors.
