Fission Product Transport in TRISO Particle Layers under Operating and Off-Normal Conditions

The objective of this project is to determine the diffusivity and chemical behavior of key fission products (ag, Cs, I. Te, Eu and Sr) through SiC and PyC both thermally, under irradiation, and under stress using FP introduction techniques that avoid the pitfalls of past experiments. The experimental approach is to create thin PyC-SiC couples containing the fission product to be studied embedded in the PyC layer. These samples will then be subjected to high temperature exposures in a vacuum and also to irradiation at high temperature, and last, to irradiation under stress at high temperature. The PyC serves as a host layer, providing a means of placing the fission product close to the SiC without damaging the SiC layer by its introduction or losing the FP during heating. Experimental measurements of grain boundary structure and distribution (EBSD, HRTEM, APT) will be used in the modeling effort to determine the qualitative dependence of FP diffusion coefficients on grain boundary orientation, temperature and stress.