Phase-field simulations of intergranular fission gas bubble behavior in U3Si2 nuclear fuel

Aagesen, Larry K.; Andersson, David; Beeler, Benjamin W.; Cooper, Michael W. D.; Gamble, Kyle A.; Miao, Yinbin; Pastore, Giovanni; Tonks, Michael R.

doi:10.1016/j.jnucmat.2020.152415

Title: Phase-field simulations of intergranular fission gas bubble behavior in U₃Si₂ nuclear fuel

Journal Article · 04 August 2020 · Journal of Nuclear Materials

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnucmat.2020.152415 · OSTI ID:1669108

Aagesen, Larry K. ^[1]; Andersson, David ^[2];

^[3]; Cooper, Michael W. D. ^[2]; Gamble, Kyle A. ^[1]; Miao, Yinbin ^[4]; Pastore, Giovanni ^[1]; Tonks, Michael R. ^[5]

Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States)
Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
North Carolina State Univ., Raleigh, NC (United States)
Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Lemont, IL (United States)
Univ. of Florida, Gainesville, FL (United States)

U₃Si₂ is a potential accident-tolerant fuel that shows promise due to its high thermal conductivity and higher uranium density relative to UO₂. However, its swelling and fission gas release behavior in light water reactor (LWR) conditions is relatively unknown. To provide mechanistic insight and determine parameters for engineering-scale fuel performance modeling of pellet-form U₃Si₂, phase-field simulations of the growth, interconnection, and venting of intergranular fission gas bubbles were performed. The fractional coverage of the grain boundary and the fraction of bubble area that is vented were calculated as a function of time. From the simulation data, the fractional grain boundary coverage at saturation, an important parameter needed in engineering-scale modeling of swelling and fission gas release, was determined. Multiple simulations were run to determine the uncertainty in the calculated value. Finally, the effect of model assumptions and input parameters that are not well known was evaluated. Simulation results are compared to related theoretical and computational work. Based on the simulation results, a value of 0.60 for the fractional grain boundary coverage at saturation is recommended for U₃Si₂ fuel.

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Research Organization:: Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States); Idaho National Laboratory (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States); Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: Con- sortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors; USDOE; USDOE National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA); USDOE Office of Nuclear Energy (NE), Nuclear Energy Advanced Modeling and Simulation (NEAMS)

Grant/Contract Number:: 89233218CNA000001; AC02-06CH11357; AC07-05ID14517

OSTI ID:: 1669108

Report Number(s):: INL/JOU-20-57293-Revision-0; 162501

Journal Information:: Journal of Nuclear Materials, Journal Name: Journal of Nuclear Materials Vol. 541; ISSN 0022-3115

Publisher:: ElsevierCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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Title: Phase-field simulations of intergranular fission gas bubble behavior in U3Si2 nuclear fuel

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Title: Phase-field simulations of intergranular fission gas bubble behavior in U₃Si₂ nuclear fuel