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U.S. Department of Energy
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FUEL CYCLE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM. Quarterly Progress Report, April 1 to June 30, 1962

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:4747441

The progress in developing low cost uranium oxide and carbide fuels by lowering the cost of fabrication processes is reported. Three full scale fuel rods containing uranium dioxide pellets sintered by the low temperature process were fabricated and forwarded to the VBWR for irradiation. The 5% enriched pellets were obtained by sintering at 1150 deg C in nitrogen to produce densities of 95 to 96% of theoretical. Final measurements of thermal expansion of triplicate specimens representing 4.4 wt% carbon sintered uranium carbide and 4.5 wt% carbon cast uranium carbide were made. The average coefficients of linear therma1 expansion over the range from room temperature to 1000 deg C were 11.8 x 10/sup -6/ and 11.0 x 10/sup -6/ mm/mm- deg c, respectively. Average coefficients for single specimens representing 4.8 wt% carbon sintered material and 5.2 wt% carbon cast uranium carbide were found to be 10.9 x 10/sup -6/ and 11.5 x 10/sup -6/ mm/mm/sup - deg C/, respectively. (auth)

Research Organization:
United Nuclear Corp. Development Div., White Plains, N.Y.
NSA Number:
NSA-16-033483
OSTI ID:
4747441
Report Number(s):
UNC-5033
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English