Open AccessEFFECTS OF FUEL BURN-UP ON THE DISSOLUTION PROCESS-I
Author(s) -
W. Jr. Davis
Publication year - 1959
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Reports
DOI - 10.2172/4140398
Subject(s) - burnup , dissolution , materials science , nuclear fuel , uranium dioxide , metallurgy , oxide , radiochemistry , nuclear engineering , chemistry , nuclear chemistry , uranium , engineering
Data on the effects of nuclear fuel burnup on dissolution rates and U losses of a few fuel types are summarized. Burnup to the 40% level produced very little effect on the rate of solution of stainless steel-UO/sub 2/ fuel elements in solutions of the Darex type. Beyond passivation, burnup to the 250 Mwd/T level did not produce a large effect on the rate of decladding nor on the U losses in the Sulfex process. Bunnup to the 15% or 4300 Mwd/T level produced little or no effect on the rate of decladding, U losses, or Pu losses in the Zirflex process. Two other effects, air oxidation of irradiated UO/sub 2/ and prolonged contact of this oxide with Sulfex solutions in the absence of actively dissolving stainless steel appeared to be much more serious sources of loss of U. (auth