Preliminary developments of MTR plates with uranium nitride
- CERCA, Romans (France)
- Institut fuer Transurane, Karlsruhe (Germany)
In the opinion of CERCA, the total weight of Uranium per MTR plate (without changing the external dimensions) cannot be further increased using U{sub 3}Si{sub 2}. Limits have been reached on plates with a thicker meat or loaded to 6g Ut/cm{sup 3}. The use of a denser fuel like Uranium mononitride could permit an increase in these limits. A collaboration between the Institute for Transuranium Elements (ITU), Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, and CERCA has been set ut. The preliminary studies at the ITU to check compatibility between aluminium and UN proved that there are no metallurgical interactions below 500{degrees}C. Feasibility of the manufacturing, on a laboratory scale at CERCA, of depleted Uranium mononitride plates loaded to 7 g Ut/cm{sup 3} has been demonstrated. The manufacturing process, however, is only one aspect of the development of a new fuel. The experience gained in the case of U{sub 3}Si{sub 2} has shown that the development of a new fuel requires considerable time and financial investment. Such a development certainly represents an effort of about 10 years.
- Research Organization:
- Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
- OSTI ID:
- 567641
- Report Number(s):
- ANL/RERTR/TM-20; CONF-9409107-; ON: DE98000036; TRN: 98:003339
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: International meeting on reduced enrichment for research and test reactors, Williamsburg, VA (United States), 18-22 Sep 1994; Other Information: PBD: Aug 1997; Related Information: Is Part Of Proceedings of the 1994 international meeting on reduced enrichment for research and test reactors; PB: 427 p.
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
MTR plates modeling with MAIA
Performance of low-enriched U/sub 3/Si/sub 2/-aluminum dispersion fuel elements in the Oak Ridge Research Reactor