Behavior of breached mixed-oxide fuel pins during off-normal high-temperature irradiation

Journal Article · Sat Feb 01 00:00:00 EST 1992 · Nuclear Technology; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.13182/NT92-1· OSTI ID:5764723

Strain, R V; Gross, K C; Lambert, J D.B. ^[1]; Colburn, R P ^[2]; Odo, T ^[3]

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1. Argonne National Lab., IL (United States)
2. Westinghouse Hanford Co., Richland, WA (United States)
3. Power Reactor and Nuclear Fuel Development Corp., Tokai, Ibaraki (Japan)

This paper reports on a test containing 19 mixed-oxide fuel pins that was operated in the Experimental Breeder Reactor II (EBR-II) at peak cladding temperatures near 800{degrees} C. Two test pins that had been designed to fail at {approximately}5 at.% burnup and two low-burnup environmental pins failed and then were operated in the run beyond cladding breach mode for 22 days. Very high delayed neutron signals occurred during the irradiation of the test, and it was terminated as a result of high delayed neutron signals and evidence of plutonium in the coolant. Each of the four pins exhibited multiple breaches in the upper half of the fuel column. Measurements of fuel trapped on the filter section of a deposition sampler that was located above the test indicated that {approximately}2.7 g of fuel was lost during the irradiation. Postirradiation examination of the pins indicates that most of the fuel was lost from a single pin. The fuel loss resulted in an increase in the background delayed neutron signal but had no other deleterious long-term effect on the operation of the EBR-II.

• OSTI ID: 5764723
• Journal Information: Nuclear Technology; (United States), Vol. 97:2; ISSN 0029-5450
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS
EBR-2 REACTOR
FUEL PINS
TESTING
OXIDES
BURNUP
DELAYED NEUTRONS
DESIGN
FAILURES
FUEL-CLADDING INTERACTIONS
IRRADIATION
MIXTURES
PLUTONIUM
TEMPERATURE DEPENDENCE
TEMPERATURE RANGE 1000-4000 K
ACTINIDES
BARYONS
BREEDER REACTORS
CHALCOGENIDES
DISPERSIONS
ELEMENTARY PARTICLES
ELEMENTS
EPITHERMAL REACTORS
EXPERIMENTAL REACTORS
FAST REACTORS
FBR TYPE REACTORS
FERMIONS
FISSION NEUTRONS
FUEL ELEMENTS
HADRONS
LIQUID METAL COOLED REACTORS
LMFBR TYPE REACTORS
METALS
NEUTRONS
NUCLEONS
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
POWER REACTORS
REACTOR COMPONENTS
REACTORS
RESEARCH AND TEST REACTORS
SODIUM COOLED REACTORS
TEMPERATURE RANGE
TRANSURANIUM ELEMENTS
210802* - Nuclear Power Plants- Economics- Fuel Cycle
220600 - Nuclear Reactor Technology- Research
Test & Experimental Reactors