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U.S. Department of Energy
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PRESSURIZED WATER REACTOR (PWR) PROJECT. Technical Progress Report for the Period August 24 to October 23, 1960

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:4027468
All drawings of the PWR Core-2 cage assembly, seed and blanket fuel assemblies, and the control rod assembly were approved. A number of analyses and tests, which confirm the adequacy of the mechanical design, were completed. Natural boron carbide-silicon carbide was selected as the burnable poison material for Core-2. The basic design of the heat dissipation system was set. Effort on pressure bonding led to the development of a procedure that avoids abnormal grain growth in localized areas of the cladding. It was also found that pyrolytic carbon deposited on fuel wafers is significantly superior to sprayed graphite in reducing uranium diffusion into the cladding of pressurebonded oxide plates. Corrosion tests resulted in a preliminary conclusion that weight gains in pressure-bonded oxide plates may be reduced by a post-bending heat treatment involving rapid cooling from the bonding temperature. Preliminary data indlcate good corrosion resistance for ZrO/sub 2/- UO/sub 2/, the reference fuel material for the seed of Core-2. An improved analytical treatment of long-lived fission product poisons was developed for use in subsequent lifetime calculations. Blanket fuel bundles removed from Core-I after 5800 EFPH show no significant changes in the dimensions. Thermocouple measurements obtained from Core-I show good agreement with predicted coolant temperature rises and fuel element temperatures. Performance tests on a steam generator indicated that low flow exists in the first downcomer at the inlet end of the heat exchanger. The calibration of high range radiation monitoring instruments was studied. (For preceding period see WAPD-MRP-87.) (W.L.H.)
Research Organization:
Westinghouse Electric Corp. Bettis Atomic Power Lab., Pittsburgh
DOE Contract Number:
AT(11-1)-GEN-14
NSA Number:
NSA-15-016734
OSTI ID:
4027468
Report Number(s):
WAPD-MRP-88
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English