INVESTIGATION OF BOUNDS ON PARTICLE PACKING IN PEBBLE-BED HIGH TEMPERATURE REACTORS

Journal Article · Wed Mar 01 00:00:00 EST 2006 · Nuclear Engineering and Design

OSTI ID:912338

Kloosterman, Jan Leen; G van Rooijen, Wilfred F; Gougar, Hans D; Terry, William K

Models and methods are presented for determining practical limits of the packing density of TRISO particles in fuel pebbles for a pebble-bed reactor (PBR). These models are devised for designing and interpreting fuel testing experiments. Two processes for particle failure are accounted for: failure of touching particles at the pressing stage in the pebble manufacturing process, and failure due to inner pressure buildup during irradiation. The second process gains importance with increasing fuel temperature, which limits the particle packing density and the corresponding fuel enrichment. Suggestions for improvements to the models are presented.

• Research Organization: Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: DOE - NE
• DOE Contract Number: DE-AC07-99ID-13727
• OSTI ID: 912338
• Report Number(s): INL/JOU-05-00611; NEDEAU; TRN: US0800358
• Journal Information: Nuclear Engineering and Design, Vol. 236, Issue 5-6; ISSN 0029-5493
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

11 - NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
BUILDUP
IRRADIATION
MANUFACTURING
PEBBLE BED REACTORS
PRESSING
TESTING
fuel
neutronics
radiation damage
TRISO