PRESSURIZED WATER REACTOR (PWR) PROJECT TECHNICAL PROGRESS REPORT FOR THE PERIOD OCTOBER 24, 1958 TO DECEMBER 23, 1958

Technical Report · Sat Oct 31 00:00:00 EST 1959

OSTI ID:4294549

5 6 6 2 6 6 8 6 6 6 7 3 strumented to monitor fuel plate temperature and the design of the mating control rod shrouds have been modified to simplify fabrication, improve rigidity, and eliminate fretting. Several alternate Seed 2 metal and inlet water temperature thermocouple terminal box designs were developed. Analysis of the blanket cluster indicated a severe pressure loading on the cluster that required a major design change. Limitations imposed on the number and locations of places that instrumentation tubing can be carried through the flange are setting a pattern for flange penetrations. The stress relaxation properties of Zircaloy-2 in the beta-quenched dead annealed and as-welded conditions have been determined. Fission gas release from 80 mil thick UO/sub 2/ plates exposed at 702,000 Btu/hr-ft/sup 2/ to 10,250 Mwd/t was found to be O.23% based on krypton-85 determinations. Tensile testing of modified Zircaloy tensile specimens exposed in an in-pile hot water loop indicated that the ductility of nickel diffusion bonded specimens was sharply reduced as the nickel content increased, that the ductility of copper and iron diffusion bonded specimens was reduced approximately the same amount as normal Zircaloy, and that the ductility of normal Zircaloy-2 and nickel free Zircaloy-2 specimens was not significantly different. Examination of the defected and water-logged compartmented plate fuel element (CR-X-1-0 test) showed the original defect to be blocked and small hairline cracks existing in the cladding of the swollen compartment. Improved quality bonds displaying reduced bond-line porosity and high bend strervth have been achieved in copper-diffusion-bonded PWR Core 2 oxide plate fuel elements with improved copper plating and vacuum sealing techniques. Chemical analyses of the cladding as a function of distance from the exposed surface of copper-diffusion-bonded fuel elements indicates that uranium diffusion (from the contained UO/sub 2/ fuel) is restricted to a few mils and does not present a surface contamination problem. Examination of lumped burnable poison plates after irradiation in NaK capsules indicates that 2 wt. % B/sup 10/ stainless steel (18 Cr-15 Ni--Fe) alloy is a very promising material. No adverse effects were noted after up to 70% burnup of the B/sup 10/ atoms with thickness increasing from 0.030 to 0.033 in. The investigation of a protective metallic coating for Ag-15 In-5Cd alternate control rod material was successfully completed. Tests in dynamic oxygenated water at 55o deg F indicate that the coating is quite effective in protecting the base alloy during severe oxygen. Single phase solid solutions of ZrO/sub 2/-UO/sub 2/ which are corrosion resistant to high temperature, high pH water were fabricated. Results of an isothermal compressional stress gradient test on Zircaloy-2 containing dissolved hydrogen showed a definite redistribution of hydrogen toward the region of maximum stress. A twodimensional depletion study of PWR-1 has been carried through the reactivity life of Seed 1. The data thus obtained are being used to reevaluate the reactivity life of Seed 1, and also as the basis for a series of threedimensional synthesis studies to determine the power distribution in the core at various times in life. The effect of the local non-uniform depletion of fuel in a seed cluster on the estimated reactivity life on PWR-1 has been found to be negligible. The two-dimensional depletion calculation of a PWR-2 seed subassembly having two distinct zones of fuel has been completed. For the case studied, the local power peak-to-average ratio increased with time by about 10 percent of its initial value. However, the maximum value attained was still 20 percent below the value existing at beginning-of-life

• Research Organization: Westinghouse Electric Corp. Bettis Plant, Pittsburgh
• DOE Contract Number: AT-11-1-GEN-14
• NSA Number: NSA-13-005959
• OSTI ID: 4294549
• Report Number(s): WAPD-MRP-77
• Resource Relation: Other Information: Orig. Receipt Date: 31-DEC-59
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

REACTORS
ACIDITY
ACTIVATION
BLANKETS
BONDING
BORON 10
BURNUP
CADMIUM ALLOYS
CANNING
CHROMIUM ALLOYS
CLOSURES
COATING
CONFIGURATION
CONTAMINATION
CONTROL ELEMENTS
COOLANT LOOPS
COPPER
CORROSION PROTECTION
CRACKS
DEFECTS
DEFORMATION
DIFFUSION
DISTRIBUTION
EFFICIENCY
EQUATIONS
ERRORS
FABRICATION
FAILURES
FISSION PRODUCTS
FUEL ELEMENTS
GASES
HIGH TEMPERATURE
HYDROGEN
IN PILE LOOPS
INDIUM ALLOYS
INSTRUMENTS
IRON
IRON ALLOYS
IRRADIATION
JOINTS
KRYPTON 85
LEAKS
MATERIALS TESTING
MEASURED VALUES
MECHANICAL PROPERTIES
MOCKUP
MONITORING
NEUTRON FLUX
NICKEL
NICKEL ALLOYS
NUMERICALS
OXIDATION
OXYGEN
PLANNING
PL