Fuel development for the advanced neutron source

Conference · Fri Jun 01 04:00:00 EDT 1990 · Transactions of the American Nuclear Society; (USA)

OSTI ID:6179645

Copeland, G L ^[1]; Snelgrove, J L ^[2]

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1. Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (USA)
2. Argonne National Lab., IL (USA)

The high power density required to reach the goals of the advanced neutron source (ANS) reactor places exceptional demands on the fuel. The temperatures and fission rates are beyond the experience level for aluminum-based research reactor fuels. The reference fuel for the ANS is U{sub 3}Si{sub 2} dispersed in aluminum. This high-density fuel was recently developed and qualified for converting research reactors for operation with low-enrichment fuels. Tests are under way to verify its expected good performance with high enrichment under ANS conditions. The ANS design also challenges the fuel fabricator. Both an axial and a radial fuel gradient are required. Improved methods of achieving and verifying fuel homogeneity are needed to minimize hot-spot allowances and thus allow the reactor to operate closer to the limits of the fuel. The status of these development programs is discussed in this paper.

• OSTI ID: 6179645
• Report Number(s): CONF-900608--
• Conference Information: Journal Name: Transactions of the American Nuclear Society; (USA) Journal Volume: 61
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

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