NSUF 21-4263: Local thermal properties of fast reactor MOX fuels

This work will be the first application of the thermal conductivity microscope (TCM) to sodium fast reactor (SFR) mixed oxide fuel (MOX). The benefit of using the TCM compared to standard laser flash analysis used on fuel is that the TCM is able to spatially resolve the local thermal conductivity at a resolution in the range of 50-100 micrometers. At high burnup of MOX, extensive migration of fission products towards the fuel to cladding gap occurs, which forms the so-called “Joint Oxide Gaine” or JOG. Using the TCM, the radial distribution of thermal conductivity can be determined and correlated to the elemental composition and underlying microstructure that resulted from a previous RTE (RTE #18-1452). Because the SFR MOX has been irradiated, the TCM is the only facility in the world that can perform these measurements. The scope of the project (1.5 days sample preparation of existing sample at the Irradiated Materials Characterization Laboratory, and 6 days of TCM measurements) is within the scale of an RTE and would provide first-of-its-kind data on the thermal conductivity of irradiated MOX fuel.

Допълнителна информация

Поле Стойност
Awarded Institution Brigham Young University
Embargo End Date 2024-05-09
Facility Tech Lead Alina Montrose
NSUF Call FY 2021 RTE 1st Call
PI Troy Munro
PIE Facilities Irradiated Materials Characterization Laboratory
Project Member Dr. Troy Munro - Brigham Young University (https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2557-4911)
Project Member Dr. Tsvetoslav Pavlov, Distinguished Postdoctoral Associate - Idaho National Laboratory
Project Notes Awarded on 06/07/2021
Project Type RTE
Publication Analysis of radially resolved thermal conductivity in high burnup mixed oxide fuel and comparison to thermal conductivity correlations implemented in fuel performance codes Marat Khafizov, Joshua Ferrigno, Tsvetoslav Pavlov, Narayan Poudel, Daniele Salvato, Chuting Tsai, Troy Munro, Fabiola Cappia Journal of Nuclear Materials 596 2024-04-26 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnucmat.2024.155090
RTE Number 4263