Fuel loading patterns which have a minimum power peak are
economically desirable to allow power reactors to operate at the highest
possible power density and to minimize the possibility of fuel
failure. A computer code called SHUFLE was developed for pressurized
water reactors which shuffles the fuel in search of...
This report presents a refined method for the calculation of fuel centerline temperatures and the linear-heat-rating-to-incipient melting, ' Q'[subscript m], of mixed-oxide fuel typical of that to be used in the Fast Flux Test Facility and in Liquid Metal Fast Breeder Reactors. Of primary concern are the effects of the...
Large digital computer reactor fuel performance codes
perform repeated calculations of temperature profiles
during transients. The thermal response is required to
calculate the mechanical behavior. This mechanical
response in turn feeds back to the thermal calculations
through mechanisms such as fuel swelling or shrinking,
causing changes in the fuel-clad gap...
The establishment of any thermal model of reactor fuel
requires a thorough understanding of the behavior of the
thermal conductivity. This is especially true in the case
of sphere pac fuels where the conductivity is a function
of many variables beyond those normally affecting conventional
fuels. One of these variables,...
The use of advanced concepts can make the nuclear fuel
cycle more efficient by allowing pins to be operated at
high powers and to higher burnups. Among the more
promising concepts in advanced fuels is sphere pac fuel.
In a first attempt to bring together models describing
individual phenomena, the...
The design, development, and utilization of a direct shear test
apparatus is presented in this thesis. The effectiveness of the
device for determining the friction angle stress state parameter is
studied. Two materials, alumina and uranium dioxide, were tested.
Alumina microspheres were employed in the initial experiments
to simulate the...
A large, multi-year experimental program has been conducted to develop a strain gaging program for application to the flow testing of prototypic, plate-type fuel for high performance research reactors. This test program has resulted in the selection of appropriate strain gage construction, adhesives, and protective coatings to allow the
acquisition...