RERTR Program Progress in Qualifying Reduced-enrichment Fuels PDF Download

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In order to provide the technical means for reducing the enrichment of uranium used to fuel research and test reactors, the US Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program has been engaged in the development and testing of higher-uranium-density fuels than had been used previously. The main characteristics to be considered in evaluating the performance of a fuel are its swelling, its blister-threshold temperature, and its metallurgical appearance. Data for the qualification of the reduced-enrichment fuels being developed by the RERTR Program are obtained from examination of minature fuel plates (miniplates) which successfully pass the irradiation screening tests and from examinations of full-sized fuel elements. This paper will summarize the miniplate data and will give the status of full-sized element irradiations. Finally, the current status of qualification of the various fuel types will be discussed and some projections of the future will be given.

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The status of the US Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program is reviewed. After a summary of the accomplishments which the RERTR Program had achieved by the end of 1984 with its many international partners, emphasis is placed on the progress achieved during 1985 and on current plans and schedules. A new miniplate series, concentrating on U3Si2-Al and U3Si-Al fuels, was fabricated and is well into irradiation. The whole-core ORR demonstration is scheduled to begin in November 1985, with U3Si2-Al fuel at 4.8 g U/cm3. Altogether, 921 full-size test and prototype elements have been ordered for fabrication with reduced enrichment and the new technologies. Qualification of U3Si-Al fuel with approx. 7 g U/cm3 is still projected for 1989. This progress could not have been achieved without the close international cooperation which has existed since the beginning, and whose continuation and intensification will be essential to the achievement of the long-term RERTR goals.

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The progress of the Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program is described. After a brief summary of the results which the RERTR Program, in collaboration with its many international partners, had achieved by the end of 1986, the activities, results, and new developments which occurred in 1987 are reviewed. Irradiation of the second miniplate series, concentrating on U3Si2-Al and U3Si-Al fuels, was completed and postirradiation examinations were performed on many of its miniplates. The whole-core ORR demonstration with U3Si2-Al fuel at 4.8 g U/cm3 was completed at the end of March with excellent results and with 29 elements estimated to have reached at least 40% average burnup. Good progress was made in the area of LEU usage for the production of fission 99Mo, and in the coordination of safety evaluations related to LEU conversions of US university reactors. Planned activities include testing and demonstrating advanced fuels intended to allow use of reduced enrichment uranium in very-high-performance reactors. Two candidate fuels are U3Si-Al with 19.75% enrichment and U3Si2-Al with 45% enrichment. Demonstration of these fuels will include irradiation of full-size elements and, possibly, a full-core demonstration. Achievement of the final program goals is still projected for 1990. This progress could not have been possible without the close international cooperation which has existed from the beginning, and which is essential to the ultimate success of the RERTR Program.

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The status of the Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program is reviewed. After a brief review of the accomplishments which the RERTR Program, in cooperation with its many international partners, had achieved by the end of 1983 in the area of LEU research reactor fuels development and application, emphasis is placed on the RERTR Program developments which took place during 1984 and on current plans and schedules. The RERTR progress in 1984 has been significant, with solid accomplishments and few surprises. Most LEU U3Si2-Al irradiation tests with 4.8 g U/cm3 have been successfully completed, and contract negotiations are under way for the procurement of a whole-core demonstration of this fuel in the ORR. The demonstration is to begin in mid-1985 and to last for approximately eighteen months. Qualification of U3Si2-Al fuel with 7 g U/cm3 is scheduled for 1989. International cooperation among fuel developers, commercial vendors, and reactor operators has been essential to the progress which has been achieved. With continued international cooperation, it will be feasible to significantly reduce HEU usage in research reactors in the next few years.

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The progress of the Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program is described. After a brief summary of the results which the RERTR Program, in collaboration with its many international partners, had achieved by the end of 1985, the activities, results, and new developments which occurred in 1986 are reviewed. The second miniplate series, concentrating on U3Si2-Al and U3Si-Al fuels, was expanded and its irradiation continued. Postirradiation examinations of several of these miniplates and of six previously irradiated U3Si2-Al full-size elements were completed with excellent results. The whole-core ORR demonstration with U3Si2-Al fuel at 4.8 g U/cm3 is well under way and due for completion before the end of 1987. DOE removed an important barrier to conversions by announcing that the new LEU fuels will be accepted for reprocessing. New DOE prices for enrichment and reprocessing services were calculated to have minimal effect on HEU reactors, and to reduce by about 8 to 10% the total fuel cycle costs of LEU reactors. New program activities include preliminary feasibility studies of LEU use in DOE reactors, evaluation of the feasibility to use LEU targets for the production of fission-product 99Mo, and responsibility for coordinating safety evaluations related to LEU conversions of US university reactors, as required by NRC. Achievement of the final program goals is projected for 1990. This progress could not have been achieved without close international cooperation, whose continuation and intensification are essential to the achievement of the ultimate goals of the RERTR Program.

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The status of the US Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program is reviewed. After a brief outline of the RERTR Program objectives, goals and past accomplishments, emphasis is placed on the developments which took place during 1983 and on current program plans and schedules. Most program activities have proceeded as planned and a combination of two silicide fuels (U3Si2-Al and U3Si-Al) was found to hold excellent promise for achieving the long-term program goals. A modification of the program plan, including the development and demonstration of those fuels, was prepared and is now being implemented. The uranium density of qualified RERTR fuels for plate-type reactors is forecasted to grow by approximately 1 g U/cm3 each year, from the current 1.7 g U/cm3 to the 7.0 g U/cm3 which will be reached in 1988. The technical needs of research reactors for HEU exports are also forecasted to undergo a gradual and dramatic decline in the coming years.

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Pages : 12

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The progress of the Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program since its inception in 1978 is described. A brief summary of the results which the RERTR Program had achieved by the end of 1996 in collaboration with its many international partners is followed by a detailed review of the major events, findings, and activities of 1997. Significant progress has been made during the past year. In the area of U.S. acceptance of spent fuel from foreign research reactors, several shipments have taken place and additional are being planned. Intense fuel development activities are in progress, including procurement of equipment, screening of candidate materials, and production of microplates. Irradiation of the first series of microplates began in August 1997 in the Advanced Test Reactor, in Idaho. Progress has been made in the Russian RERTR program, which aims to develop and demonstrate within five years the technical means needed to convert Russian-supplied research reactors to LEU fuels. The study of an alternative LEU core for the FRM-II design has been extended to address, with favorable results, controversial performance issues which were raised at last year's meeting. Progress was also made on several aspects of producing molybdenum-99 from fission targets utilizing LEU instead of HEU. Various types of targets and processes are being pursued, with FDA approval of an LEU process projected to occur within two years. The feasibility of LEU Fuel conversion for three important DOE research reactors (BMRR, HFBR, and HFIR) has been evaluated by the RERTR program. In spite of the many momentous events which have occurred during the intervening years, and the excellent progress achieved, the most important challenges that the RERTR program faces today are not very different in type from those that were faced during the first RERTR meeting. Now, as then, the most important task is to develop new LEU fuels satisfying requirements which cannot be satisfied by any existing fuel. These new advanced fuels will enable conversion of the reactors which cannot be converted today, ensure better efficiency and performance for all research reactors, and allow the design of more powerful new advanced LEU reactors. As in the past, the success of the RERTR program will depend on free exchange of ideas and information, and on the international friendship and cooperation that have been a trademark of the RERTR program since its inception.

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Progress in the development and irradiation testing of high-density fuels for use with low-enriched uranium in research and test reactors is reported. Swelling and blister-threshold temperature data obtained from the examination of miniature fuel plates containing UAl(subscript x), U3O, U3Si2, or U3Si dispersed in an aluminum matrix are presented. Combined with the results of metallurgical examinations, these data show that these four fuel types will perform adequately to full burnup of the 235U contained in the low-enriched fuel. The exothermic reaction of the uranium-silicide fuels with aluminum has been found to occur at about the same temperature as the melting of the aluminum matrix and cladding and to be essentially quenched by the melting endotherm. A new series of miniature fuel plate irradiations is also discussed.

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The statue of the U.S. Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program is reviewed. After a brief outline of RERTR Program objectives and goals, program accomplishments are discussed with emphasis on the development, demonstration and application of new LEU fuels. Most program activities have proceeded as planned, and a combination of two silicide fuels (U3Si2-Al and U3Si-Al) holds excellent promise for achieving the long-term program goals. Current plans and schedules project the uranium density of qualified RERTR fuels for plate-type reactors to grow by approximately 1 g U/cm3 each year, from the current 1.7 g U/cm3 to the 7.0 g U/cm3 which will be reached in late 1988. The technical needs of research and test reactors for HEU exports are also forecasted to undergo a gradual but dramatic decline in the coming years.

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Pages : 15

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The progress of the Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program is described. The major events, findings, and activities of 1995 are reviewed after a brief summary of the results which the RERTR Program had achieved by the end of 1994. The revelation that Iraq was on the verge of developing a nuclear weapon at the time of the Gulf War, and that it was planning to do so by extracting HEU from the fuel of its research reactors, has given new impetus and urgency to the RERTR commitment of eliminating HEU use in research and test reactors worldwide. Development of advanced LEU research reactor fuels is scheduled to begin in October 1995. The Russian RERTR program, which aims to develop and demonstrate within the next five years the technical means needed to convert Russian-supplied research reactors to LEU fuels, is now in operation. A Statement of Intent was signed by high US and Chinese officials, endorsing cooperative activities between the RERTR program and Chinese laboratories involved in similar activities. Joint studies of LEU technical feasibility were completed for the SAFARI-I reactor in South Africa and for the ANS reactor in the US. A new study has been initiated for the FRM-II reactor in Germany. Significant progress was made on several aspects of producing 99Mo from fission targets utilizing LEU instead of HEU. A cooperation agreements is in place with the Indonesian BATAN. The first prototypical irradiation of an LEU metal-foil target for 99Mo production was accomplished in Indonesia. The TR-2 reactor, in Turkey, began conversion. SAPHIR, in Switzerland, was shut down. LEU fuel fabrication has begun for the conversion of two more US reactors. Twelve foreign reactors and nine domestic reactors have been fully converted. Approximately 60 % of the work required to eliminate the use of HEU in US-supplied research reactors has been accomplished.