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Title: Fabrication experience of Al- sup 233 U and Al-Pu plate fuel for the Purnima III and Kamini research reactors

Abstract

This paper reports on aluminum-clad Al-20 wt% {sup 233}U and Al-23 wt% Pu plate fuel subassemblies that have been fabricated for the Purnima III critical facility and the Kamini research reactor. The fabrication flow sheet consists of preparing the master alloy using aluminum and uranium or plutonium metals as feed materials, remelting and casting the fuel alloy ingots, rolling, picture framing and sandwiching the fuel alloy between aluminum sheets, roll bonding, locating the fuel alloy core outline by x-ray radiography, and trimming and machining to final dimensions. Metallic molds produce better ingots than graphite ones. The addition of zirconium during melting improves the microstructure of the Al-U and Al-Pu castings and facilitates hot rolling of the ingots. In the subassembly the fuel plates are finally locked in aluminum spacer grooves by a novel roll-swaging technique. High-resolution x-ray radiographs and microdensitometric scans are utilized to confirm the homogeneous distribution of the fissile material in the fuel plates. Nonbond areas are detected by blister testing and immersion ultrasonic testing of the roll-bonded fuel plates.

Authors:
; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;  [1]
  1. Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Bombay 400085 (IN)
Publication Date:
OSTI Identifier:
5582884
Resource Type:
Journal Article
Journal Name:
Nuclear Technology; (United States)
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 96:1; Journal ID: ISSN 0029-5450
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS; KAMINI REACTOR; FUEL ASSEMBLIES; PLUTONIUM; PURNIMA REACTOR; URANIUM 233; ALLOYS; ALUMINIUM; CASTINGS; DISTRIBUTION; FABRICATION; FLOWSHEETS; FUEL PLATES; GRAPHITE; MELTING; METALS; MOLDING MATERIALS; ULTRASONIC TESTING; X-RAY RADIOGRAPHY; ZIRCONIUM; ACOUSTIC TESTING; ACTINIDE ISOTOPES; ACTINIDE NUCLEI; ACTINIDES; ALPHA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES; CARBON; DIAGRAMS; ELEMENTAL MINERALS; ELEMENTS; EPITHERMAL REACTORS; EVEN-ODD NUCLEI; EXPERIMENTAL REACTORS; FAST REACTORS; FUEL ELEMENTS; HEAVY ION DECAY RADIOISOTOPES; HEAVY NUCLEI; INDUSTRIAL RADIOGRAPHY; ISOTOPES; MATERIALS; MATERIALS TESTING; MINERALS; NEON 24 DECAY RADIOISOTOPES; NONDESTRUCTIVE TESTING; NONMETALS; NUCLEI; PHASE TRANSFORMATIONS; RADIOISOTOPES; REACTOR COMPONENTS; REACTORS; RESEARCH AND TEST REACTORS; SPONTANEOUS FISSION RADIOISOTOPES; TANK TYPE REACTORS; TESTING; THERMAL REACTORS; TRANSITION ELEMENTS; TRANSURANIUM ELEMENTS; URANIUM ISOTOPES; WATER COOLED REACTORS; WATER MODERATED REACTORS; YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES; ZERO POWER REACTORS; 220300* - Nuclear Reactor Technology- Fuel Elements

Citation Formats

Ganguly, C, Prasad, G J, Mahule, N, Ghosh, J K, Assari, K V.J., Chandrasekharan, K N.P., Muralidhar, S, Balan, T S, and Roy, P R. Fabrication experience of Al- sup 233 U and Al-Pu plate fuel for the Purnima III and Kamini research reactors. United States: N. p., 1991. Web.
Ganguly, C, Prasad, G J, Mahule, N, Ghosh, J K, Assari, K V.J., Chandrasekharan, K N.P., Muralidhar, S, Balan, T S, & Roy, P R. Fabrication experience of Al- sup 233 U and Al-Pu plate fuel for the Purnima III and Kamini research reactors. United States.
Ganguly, C, Prasad, G J, Mahule, N, Ghosh, J K, Assari, K V.J., Chandrasekharan, K N.P., Muralidhar, S, Balan, T S, and Roy, P R. 1991. "Fabrication experience of Al- sup 233 U and Al-Pu plate fuel for the Purnima III and Kamini research reactors". United States.
@article{osti_5582884,
title = {Fabrication experience of Al- sup 233 U and Al-Pu plate fuel for the Purnima III and Kamini research reactors},
author = {Ganguly, C and Prasad, G J and Mahule, N and Ghosh, J K and Assari, K V.J. and Chandrasekharan, K N.P. and Muralidhar, S and Balan, T S and Roy, P R},
abstractNote = {This paper reports on aluminum-clad Al-20 wt% {sup 233}U and Al-23 wt% Pu plate fuel subassemblies that have been fabricated for the Purnima III critical facility and the Kamini research reactor. The fabrication flow sheet consists of preparing the master alloy using aluminum and uranium or plutonium metals as feed materials, remelting and casting the fuel alloy ingots, rolling, picture framing and sandwiching the fuel alloy between aluminum sheets, roll bonding, locating the fuel alloy core outline by x-ray radiography, and trimming and machining to final dimensions. Metallic molds produce better ingots than graphite ones. The addition of zirconium during melting improves the microstructure of the Al-U and Al-Pu castings and facilitates hot rolling of the ingots. In the subassembly the fuel plates are finally locked in aluminum spacer grooves by a novel roll-swaging technique. High-resolution x-ray radiographs and microdensitometric scans are utilized to confirm the homogeneous distribution of the fissile material in the fuel plates. Nonbond areas are detected by blister testing and immersion ultrasonic testing of the roll-bonded fuel plates.},
doi = {},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/5582884}, journal = {Nuclear Technology; (United States)},
issn = {0029-5450},
number = ,
volume = 96:1,
place = {United States},
year = {Tue Oct 01 00:00:00 EDT 1991},
month = {Tue Oct 01 00:00:00 EDT 1991}
}