Abstract
The extent and nature of the chemical interaction between the outermost coating layer of coated fuel particles embedded in zirconium metal during fabrication of metal matrix microencapsulated fuels were examined. Various particles with outermost coating layers of pyrocarbon, SiC, and ZrC have been investigated in this study. ZrC-Zr interaction was the least substantial, while the PyC-Zr reaction can be exploited to produce a ZrC layer at the interface in an in situ manner. The thickness of the ZrC layer in the latter case can be controlled by adjusting the time and temperature during processing. The kinetics of ZrC layer growth is significantly faster from what is predicted using literature carbon diffusivity data in ZrC. SiC-Zr interaction is more complex and results in formation of various chemical phases in a layered aggregate morphology at the interface.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 171-177 |
| Number of pages | 7 |
| Journal | Journal of Nuclear Materials |
| Volume | 437 |
| Issue number | 1-3 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2013 |
Funding
The aid and technical insight of Eliot Specht and Theodore Besmann at ORNL is gratefully acknowledged. Use of the Advanced Photon Source was supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Basic Energy Sciences. The JEOL6500 FEG SEM was supported by ORNL’s Shared Research Equipment (ShaRE) User Facility, which is sponsored by the Scientific User Facilities Division, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, US Department of Energy. The work presented in this paper was also partially supported by the Advanced Fuels Campaign of the Fuel Cycle R&D program in the Office of Nuclear Energy, US Department of Energy and Laboratory Directed R&D funds at ORNL.
| Funders | Funder number |
|---|---|
| Scientific User Facilities Division | |
| U.S. Department of Energy | |
| Office of Nuclear Energy | |
| Basic Energy Sciences | |
| Oak Ridge National Laboratory |