Abstract
Lead Test Rods (LTRs) from Byron Nuclear Power Plant have undergone non-destructive and destructive Post-Irradiation Examinations (PIE) in hotcell. The LTRs include Accident Tolerant Fuel (ATF) products with Cr coated cladding and ADOPT™1 fuel pellets. Poolside examinations after one cycle of irradiation were undertaken immediately during the initial outage, confirming the integrity of ATF LTRs. Several rods were extracted and set aside for later transport to hotcell facilities. The extracted accident tolerant fuel rods were grouped with some discharged high burnup AXIOM®1 rods, among others, and shipped to Oak Ridge National Laboratory for further non-destructive and destructive PIE. These AXIOM rods were from the AXIOM High Burnup Lead Test Assemblies (LTAs) program irradiated a few years ago, with rod average burnup approaching ~74 GWD/MTU. Post irradiation examinations began shortly after arrival at Oak Ridge, and testing is expected to continue into 2025. Non-destructive hotcell examinations confirmed poolside examinations, confirming creep performance of Cr coated fuel rods as well as the adherence of the coating up to the achieved exposures. Additionally, a multitude of tests are planned in various facilities in the hotcells to support the hypothesized benefits enabled by the accident tolerant and high burnup fuels. The poolside and hotcell PIE findings to date, as well as the extensive tests plans will be discussed in this paper.
| Original language | English |
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| Title of host publication | Proceedings of TopFuel 2022 Light Water Reactor Fuel Performance Conference |
| Publisher | American Nuclear Society |
| Pages | 156-160 |
| Number of pages | 5 |
| ISBN (Electronic) | 9780894487941 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2022 |
| Event | TopFuel 2022 Light Water Reactor Fuel Performance Conference - Raleigh, United States Duration: Oct 9 2022 → Oct 13 2022 |
Publication series
| Name | Proceedings of TopFuel 2022 Light Water Reactor Fuel Performance Conference |
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Conference
| Conference | TopFuel 2022 Light Water Reactor Fuel Performance Conference |
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| Country/Territory | United States |
| City | Raleigh |
| Period | 10/9/22 → 10/13/22 |
Funding
This material is based upon work supported by the Department of Energy under Award Number DENE0009033 This report was prepared as an account of work sponsored by an agency of the United States Government. Neither the United States Government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, makes any warranty, express or implied, or assumes any 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. Reference 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 by the United States Government or any agency thereof. The views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the United States Government or any agency thereof.