Other power reactor fuels

While oxide fuels have received the bulk of historic interest as nuclear power reactor fuels, a range of other uranium compounds and deployment architectures have also been considered and demonstrated to varying degrees. Metal alloys, ceramics, and particle fuels are candidates for various power reactor applications. Although these families of nuclear fuels have received more limited study than oxides, the benefits of uranium density, favorable thermophysical properties, and other factors have resulted in interest from both the traditional nuclear power industry and more recent efforts for emerging nuclear technologies. The dominant fuel chemistry issues for these fuel forms differ substantially from those of oxide systems. Synthesis routes, factors that affect fresh fuel properties, and critical aspects of fuel performance are unique to these systems and are often dominated by the desired chemical behavior of uranium in each system. This chapter will briefly introduce metallic uranium alloys (specifically uranium–zirconium), nontraditional ceramic fuels (e.g., carbides and nitrides), and oxide/oxycarbide particle fuels most familiar as the basis for tristructural isotropic fuel designs. A survey of major fuel chemistry issues is provided for each of these families of fuels with a focus on contemporary challenges and active research avenues.