Stability of LMR oxide pins and blanket rods during run-beyond-cladding-break (RBCB) operation

Conference · Wed Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1992 · Transactions of the American Nuclear Society; (United States)

OSTI ID:6983309

Bottcher, J H; Lambert, J D.B.; Strain, R V ^[1]; Boltax, A ^[2]; Ukai, S; Shikakura, S ^[3]

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1. Argonne National Lab., IL (United States)
2. Reactor Materials Technology, Pittsburgh, PA (United States)
3. Power Reactor and Nuclear Fuels Development Corp., Ibaraki-ken (Japan)

Since 1981, the U.S. Department of Energy and the Power Reactor and Nuclear Fuel Development Corporation of Japan have collaborated on an operational reliability testing program in the Experimental Breeder Reactor II. The tests were designed to determine the irradiation behavior of liquid-metal reactor (LMR) oxide pins and blanket rods during steady-state, transient, and run-beyond-claddin-breach (RBCB) operation. Phase I tests completed in 1987 involved current LMR oxide designs and claddings; the phase II tests begun in 1988 concentrate on advanced LMR designs, large-diameter pins (7.5 mm), and advance cladding alloys. The cladding breaches in these tests have been readily detected by fission-gas and delayed-neutron (DN) precursor release. The condition of the fuel pin has been monitored by these releases during RBCB operation. A variety of failures have been intentionally studied in the RBCB portion of the program for operating times of up to 142 full-power days; also, several failure types have been incidentally experienced during the transient tests. Types of failure have included those induced by gas-pressure loading either naturally or by prethinning of the cladding defects, and fuel-cladding mechanical interaction (FCMI)-induced failures or secondary failures caused by the formation of low-density fuel-sodium reaction product (FSRP). This paper summarizes this experience with regard to LMR oxide fuel stability during RBCB operation.

• OSTI ID: 6983309
• Report Number(s): CONF-921102--
• Conference Information: Journal Name: Transactions of the American Nuclear Society; (United States) Journal Volume: 66
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS
210500* -- Power Reactors
Breeding
ACCIDENTS
BREEDER REACTORS
BREEDING BLANKETS
COOPERATION
EBR-2 REACTOR
EPITHERMAL REACTORS
EXPERIMENTAL REACTORS
FAST REACTORS
FBR TYPE REACTORS
FUEL CANS
FUEL ELEMENT FAILURE
FUEL ELEMENTS
FUEL PINS
FUEL-CLADDING INTERACTIONS
FUELS
INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION
JAPANESE ORGANIZATIONS
LIQUID METAL COOLED REACTORS
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MECHANICAL PROPERTIES
MIXED OXIDE FUELS
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
PERFORMANCE TESTING
PNC
POWER REACTORS
REACTOR ACCIDENTS
REACTOR COMPONENTS
REACTORS
RESEARCH AND TEST REACTORS
SODIUM COOLED REACTORS
SOLID FUELS
STABILITY
TESTING
US DOE
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