Fuel rods operating for several years in a LWR can experience fuel-cladding gap closure as result of the phenomena due to temperature and irradiation. Local power increase induces circumferential stresses cladding different expansion pellet. In presence corrosive fission products (i.e. Iodine) beyond specific stress threshold level burnup, cracks may grow-up from internal external surface, caus...

The creep rupture of high burnup used nuclear fuel (> 45 GWD/MTU) cladding is regarded as one the failure mechanisms during long-term dry storage. A amount zirconium hydride in matrix would degrade mechanical properties especially leading to delayed cracking. To better understand influence on biaxial thermal performance and crystalline texture stability Zircaloy-4 cladding, pressurized tube tec...

The Integral Fast Reactor (IFR) concept includes a sodium-cooled fast reactor collocated with an integrated pyroprocess fuel recycling facility. The pyrochemical processes and the inert atmosphere of the heavily shielded fuel cycle facility provide inherent proliferation-resistant features for this advanced technology. The reactor can be designed to operate with a number of different conversion...

A fast spectrum accelerator-driven system (ADS) may become a very versatile tool in the nuclear industry and allow a number of new applications. Such a system may serve as a means of transmuting large quantities of actinides and long lived fission products into short lived waste. Other possibilities, include the cross-progeny fuel cycle burning Pu in a thorium matrix and generating 233U which c...