About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
Materials in Nuclear Energy Systems (MiNES) 2025
|
| Symposium
|
Materials in Nuclear Energy Systems (MiNES) 2025
|
| Presentation Title |
Enhanced Performance of Chromia-Doped Uranium Dioxide Fuel for Light Water Reactors |
| Author(s) |
Akanksha Parmar, Ryan Terrence Sweet, Stephen R. Novascone |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Akanksha Parmar |
| Abstract Scope |
Using Chromia (Cr₂O₃) as a dopant in uranium dioxide (UO₂) fuel has shown significant promise in enhancing the steady-state performance of light water reactor fuels. Chromia-doped uranium fuel exhibits enhanced grain growth, resulting in larger grain sizes that contribute to better fission gas retention and reduced swelling, as well as higher fuel densities. As a part of the investigation into this fuel behavior under irradiation, individual fuel phenomena have been investigated and implemented into the BISON fuel performance code. This work focuses on the difference in fuel fracture properties between the doped and undoped fuel.
Ceramic fuel experiences differential thermal expansion as it is heated causing it to crack. As the cracks form, pieces of the fuel can resettle radially, thereby increasing the apparent radius of the fuel and improving heat transfer to the cladding in a phenomenon known as fuel relocation.
Simulations of explicit fracture have been constructed for the doped fuel in a statistical smeared cracking framework using thermal and mechanical properties specific to doped fuel. These simulations are assessed based on the onset of fracture and the expansion of the fuel after fracture to recalibrate the existing UO₂ relocation model to be dopant specific. The resulting model is then used to illustrate the difference in integral fuel performance resulting from the different properties of the doped and undoped fuels. |
| Proceedings Inclusion? |
Undecided |