Water Reactor Fuel Element Performance Computer Modelling

Nuclear Fuel Elements: Design, Fabrication and Performance is concerned with the design, fabrication, and performance of nuclear fuel elements, with emphasis on fast reactor fuel elements. Topics range from fuel types and the irradiation behavior of fuels to cladding and duct materials, fuel element design and modeling, fuel element performance testing and qualification, and the performance of water reactor fuels. Fast reactor fuel elements, research and test reactor fuel elements, and unconventional fuel elements are also covered. This volume consists of 12 chapters and begins with an overview of nuclear reactors and fuel elements, as well as fuel element design and development based on the reactor operator's approach, materials scientist's approach, and interdisciplinary approach. The reader is then introduced to different types of nuclear fuels and their irradiation behavior, considerations for using cladding and duct materials in fuel element design and development, and fuel element design and modeling. The chapters that follow focus on the testing of fuel element performance, experimental techniques and equipment for testing fuel element designs, and the performance of fuels for water reactors. Fuel elements for gas-cooled reactors, fast reactors, and research and test reactors are also described. The book concludes with an assessment of unconventional fuel elements. This book will be useful to fuel element technologists as well as materials scientists and engineers.

Communicates the results of an international seminar which reviewed recent progress in the field of fission gas behaviour in light water reactor fuel and sought to improve the models used in computer codes predicting fission gas release. State-of-the-art knowledge is presented for both uranium-oxide and mixed-oxide fuels loaded in water reactors.

This volume brings together 47 papers from scientists involved in the fabrication of new nuclear fuels, in basic research of nuclear materials, their application and technology as well as in computer codes and modelling of fuel behaviour. The main emphasis is on progress in the development of non-oxide fuels besides reporting advances in the more conventional oxide fuels. The two currently performed large reactor safety programmes CORA and PHEBUS-FP are described in invited lectures. The contributions review basic property measurements, as well as the present state of fuel performance modelling. The performance of today's nuclear fuel, hence UO2, at high burnup is also reviewed with particular emphasis on the recently observed phenomenon of grain subdivision in the cold part of the oxide fuel at high burnup, the so-called "rim" effect. Similar phenomena can be simulated by ion implantation in order to better elucidate the underlying mechanism and reviews on high resolution electron microscopy provide further information. The papers will provide a useful treatise of views, ideas and new results for all those scientists and engineers involved in the specific questions of current nuclear waste management.

Materials in a nuclear environment are exposed to extreme conditions of radiation, temperature and/or corrosion, and in many cases the combination of these makes the material behavior very different from conventional materials. This is evident for the four major technological challenges the nuclear technology domain is facing currently: (i) long-term operation of existing Generation II nuclear power plants, (ii) the design of the next generation reactors (Generation IV), (iii) the construction of the ITER fusion reactor in Cadarache (France), (iv) and the intermediate and final disposal of nuclear waste. In order to address these challenges, engineers and designers need to know the properties of a wide variety of materials under these conditions and to understand the underlying processes affecting changes in their behavior, in order to assess their performance and to determine the limits of operation. Comprehensive Nuclear Materials, Second Edition, Seven Volume Set provides broad ranging, validated summaries of all the major topics in the field of nuclear material research for fission as well as fusion reactor systems. Attention is given to the fundamental scientific aspects of nuclear materials: fuel and structural materials for fission reactors, waste materials, and materials for fusion reactors. The articles are written at a level that allows undergraduate students to understand the material, while providing active researchers with a ready reference resource of information. Most of the chapters from the first Edition have been revised and updated and a significant number of new topics are covered in completely new material. During the ten years between the two editions, the challenge for applications of nuclear materials has been significantly impacted by world events, public awareness, and technological innovation. Materials play a key role as enablers of new technologies, and we trust that this new edition of Comprehensive Nuclear Materials has captured the key recent developments. Critically reviews the major classes and functions of materials, supporting the selection, assessment, validation and engineering of materials in extreme nuclear environments Comprehensive resource for up-to-date and authoritative information which is not always available elsewhere, even in journals Provides an in-depth treatment of materials modeling and simulation, with a specific focus on nuclear issues Serves as an excellent entry point for students and researchers new to the field