About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
2026 TMS Annual Meeting & Exhibition
|
| Symposium
|
Metallic Fuels - Design, Fabrication, and Characterization
|
| Presentation Title |
Effects of ZrN coating and heat treatment on U-Mo dispersion fuel systems under irradiation |
| Author(s) |
Jaewoo Park, Adam Robinson, William Alex Hanson, Tammy Trowbridge |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Jaewoo Park |
| Abstract Scope |
The stability of U-Mo dispersion fuel particles in Al matrix can be improved using ZrN coating and heat treatment. This study investigated irradiation behavior of fuel plates containing U-Mo particles fabricated with different conditions including heat treatment and ZrN coating thickness. Additionally, different fission densities were applied to each fuel plate to understand how these variations affect their irradiation behavior. Higher fission densities led to more recrystallization of grains and the development of high burnup structure (HBS) in fuel, and heat treatment reduced the accumulation of fission gas bubbles in fuel by coarsening their grains. The development of U-Mo/Al interaction layers was reduced with a ZrN coating thickness of 1.2 μm and above, suggesting that a critical thickness of the coating may exist to minimize the formation of the interaction layers. Dendritic features stemming from grain boundaries were identified, which might represent the early stage of HBS propagation. |
| Proceedings Inclusion? |
Planned: |
| Keywords |
Nuclear Materials, Characterization, Thin Films and Interfaces |