Abstract
Irradiation experiments and post-irradiation examinations, together referred to as irradiation testing (IRT), are prerequisites for nuclear fuel and material qualification for the deployment of new and advanced reactors, as well as radioisotope production, thereby ensuring regulatory compliance. Qualified research and test reactors (RTRs) and testing facilities are essential to enable IRT to verify performance and safety under prototypical reactor conditions. In the past, qualification of new fuels or structural materials required about 20 years. Synergist strategies, advanced tools, and qualified methods are needed to greatly reduce this timeframe of IRT and radioisotope production. This study, termed accelerated-IRT, focuses on identifying gaps and leveraging U.S.-based RTRs and material testing capabilities, leveraging the preliminary evaluation and qualification of selected RTRs to provide a generic as well as specific-case solution paths forward, ensuring adherence to stringent regulatory standards. IRT and radioisotope production utilizing qualified RTRs necessarily includes modeling and simulation to support the design (i.e. neutronics, thermal, and structural aspects) and manufacturing of irradiation test specimens, vehicles, capsules, apparatuses, and flow loops. In addition, IRT can be improved by applying advanced manufacturing techniques and in-pile sensors and instrumentation, as discussed in this study.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 18-38 |
| Number of pages | 21 |
| Journal | Nuclear Science and Engineering |
| Volume | 200 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2026 |
Funding
This paper was authored by BEA, under DOE contract no. DE-AC07-05ID14517 and UT-Battelle, LLC, U.S. Department of Energy, under DOE contract no. DE-AC05-00OR22725. The authors would like to thank the staff at INL for their encouragement and support. This paper was authored by BEA, under DOE contract no. DE-AC07-05ID14517 and UT-Battelle, LLC, under DOE contract no. DE-AC05-00OR22725. This information was prepared as an account of work sponsored by an agency of the U.S. government. Neither the U.S. government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, makes any warranty, expressed or implied, or assumes legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness, of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. References herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise, does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement recommendation, or favoring of the U.S. government or any agency thereof. The views, opinions and recommendations of authors expressed herein do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. government or any agency thereof. The authors would like to thank the staff at INL for their encouragement and support. This paper was authored by BEA, under DOE contract no. DE-AC07-05ID14517 and UT-Battelle, LLC, under DOE contract no. DE-AC05-00OR22725.
Keywords
- Irradiation testing (IRT)
- fuel and material qualification
- post-irradiation examination (PIE)
- radioisotope production
- research and test reactor (RTR)
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