Abstract
The modeling of a loss-of-coolant-accident scenario involving nuclear fuels with FeCrAl cladding materials in consideration to replace a Zircaloy requires knowledge of the thermodynamics of oxidized structures. At temperatures higher than 1500 °C, oxidation of FeCrAl alloys forms (Fe,Cr,Al)3O4 spinels. In situ high-energy X-ray diffraction in a conical nozzle levitator installed at beamline 6-ID-D of the APS was used to study the structural evolution of the oxides as a function of the temperature. Single-phase (spinel) and multiphase (spinel-corundum-FeAlO3) regions are mapped as a function of the temperature for three different compositions of FeCrAl oxidation products. The thermal expansion coefficients and cation distribution in the spinel structure have been refined. The temperature at which complete melting of the fuel cladding is expected has been determined by the liquidus temperatures of the oxidized products to be between 1657 and 1834 °C in a 20% O2/Ar atmosphere using the cooling trace method. The liquidus temperature increases with increasing Al and Cr content in the spinel phase.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 5949-5957 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| Journal | Inorganic Chemistry |
| Volume | 59 |
| Issue number | 9 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - May 4 2020 |
Funding
This work was supported by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory PhD GO! program with funding from Nuclear Technology Research and Development Advanced Fuels Campaign in the Office of Nuclear Energy U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Use of the APS (beamline 6-ID-D) an Office of Science User Facility, operated for the U.S. DOE Office of Science by ANL, was supported by the U.S. DOE under Contract DE-ACO2-06CH11357. The authors also acknowledge Dante Quirinale (SNS, ORNL) for assistance during data collection, Sergey Ushakov, Pardha Maram, and Alfred Pavlik III (NEAT, UC Davis) for constructive discussions,and Douglas Robinson (APS) for help with the beamline experiments. This work was supported by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory PhD GO! program with funding from Nuclear Technology Research and Development Advanced Fuels Campaign in the Office of Nuclear Energy, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Use of the APS (beamline 6-ID-D), an Office of Science User Facility, operated for the U.S. DOE Office of Science by ANL, was supported by the U.S. DOE under Contract DE-ACO2-06CH11357. The authors also acknowledge Dante Quirinale (SNS, ORNL) for assistance during data collection, Sergey Ushakov, Pardha Maram, and Alfred Pavlik III (NEAT, UC Davis) for constructive discussions,and Douglas Robinson (APS) for help with the beamline experiments.
| Funders | Funder number |
|---|---|
| Alfred Pavlik III | |
| Dante Quirinale | |
| Nuclear Energy | |
| DOE Office of Nuclear Energy | |
| Nuclear Technology Research and Development Advanced Fuels Campaign | |
| U.S. Department of Energy | DE-ACO2-06CH11357 |
| Office of Science | |
| Argonne National Laboratory | |
| Oak Ridge National Laboratory | |
| University of California, Davis | |
| American Pain Society | |
| SNS Nordic Forest Research |