Detailed Destructive Post-Irradiation Examinations of Mixed Uranium and Plutonium Oxide Fuel

Conference · Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 2010

OSTI ID:1009918

Smith, Rob R ^[1]; Hexel, Cole R ^[1]; Ilgner, Ralph H ^[1]

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1. ORNL

The United States Department of Energy (DOE) Fissile Materials Disposition Program (FMDP) is pursuing disposal of surplus weapons-usable plutonium by reactor irradiation as the fissile constituent of MOX fuel. Lead test assemblies (LTAs) have been irradiated for approximately 36 months in Duke Energy's Catawba-1 nuclear power plant (NPP). Per the mixed oxide (MOX) fuel topical report, approved by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), destructive post-irradiation examinations (PIEs) are to be performed on second cycle rods (irradiated to an average burnup of approximately 45 GWd/MTHM). The Radiochemical Analysis Group (RAG) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is currently performing the detailed destructive post-irradiation examinations (PIE) on four of the mixed uranium and plutonium oxide fuel rods. The analytical process involves dissolution of designated fuel segments in a shielded hot cell for high precision quantification of select fission products and actinide isotopes employing isotope dilution mass spectrometry (IDMS) among other analyses. The hot cell dissolution protocol to include the collection and subsequent alkaline fusion digestion of the fuel's acid resistant metallic particulates will be presented. Although the IDMS measurements of the fission products and actinide isotopes will not be completed by the time of the 51st INMM meeting, the setup and testing of the HPLC chromatographic separations in preparation for these measurements will be discussed.

• Research Organization: Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• DOE Contract Number: DE-AC05-00OR22725
• OSTI ID: 1009918
• Resource Relation: Conference: INMM 51st Annual Meeting, Baltimore, MD, USA, 20100710, 20100715
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS
ACTINIDE NUCLEI
DESTRUCTIVE TESTING
FISSILE MATERIALS
FISSION PRODUCTS
FUEL RODS
HIGH-PERFORMANCE LIQUID CHROMATOGRAPHY
HOT CELLS
IRRADIATION
ISOTOPE DILUTION
MASS SPECTROSCOPY
NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS
MIXED OXIDE FUELS
PLUTONIUM
PLUTONIUM OXIDES
POST-IRRADIATION EXAMINATION
RADIOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS
URANIUM