| About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
2023 TMS Annual Meeting & Exhibition
|
| Symposium
|
Microstructural, Mechanical and Chemical Behavior of Solid Nuclear Fuel and Fuel-cladding Interface
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| Presentation Title |
Irradiation Performance of Densely Packed UN TRISO Fuel in a 3D-Printed SiC Matrix |
| Author(s) |
Christian Petrie, Kory Linton, Gokul Vasudevamurthy, Danny Schappel, Rachel Seibert, Nicolas Woolstenhulme, David Carpenter, Andrew Nelson, Kurt Terrani |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Christian Petrie |
| Abstract Scope |
The Transformational Challenge Reactor fuel includes UN TRISO particles densely packed within a complex, 3D-printed SiC matrix that is intended to provide an additional barrier to fission product release. This work summarizes steady state and transient irradiations to evaluate fission product retention in compacts with varying fuel packing fractions. Most tests generally matched expectations, with no observable fission gas release. Particle failures were not observed during transient testing until the energy deposition far exceeded values expected in gas-cooled reactors, consistent with thermomechanical simulations. Fission gas release was observed during one set of low burnup steady state irradiations. Release was a result of matrix cracks that propagated through the particle coating layers in the regions with high matrix density. These failures are explained based on simulated thermal stresses and the dependence of the stress and crack propagation on the spatial distribution of the SiC matrix density. |
| Proceedings Inclusion? |
Planned: |
| Keywords |
Additive Manufacturing, Environmental Effects, Nuclear Materials |