Effect of rod internal gas state on FFRD behavior of high burnup fuel during LOCA conditions

垣内 一雄; 成川 隆文*; 宇田川 豊; 勝山 仁哉; 三原 武; 天谷 政樹

Proceedings of TopFuel 2025; Nuclear Reactor Fuel Performance Conference (Internet), p.1440 - 1449, 2025/10

Phenomena of fuel fragmentation, relocation, and dispersal (FFRD) of high burnup light water reactor fuels have been observed under simulated loss of coolant accident (LOCA) experiments. If the fuel fragments accumulate densely in the ballooned cladding during LOCA, the power of fuel rod may increase locally, which may increase the peak cladding temperature. Furthermore, if a large number of fuel fragments were dispersed from fuel rod to reactor core, the coolability of reactor core during and after the accident may be influenced. While recent studies suggest large impact of rod internal gas state on fuel fragmentation and dispersal, there have been few experimental data that enable to evaluate such impact. We thus performed three LOCA-simulated burst tests (Test no. MMDA3 / MMDA4 / LZRT5) using irradiated PWR and BWR UO fuel rods whose plenum volumes were designed to be 1 cc and 5 cc, respectively, as the main test parameter, at the Reactor Fuel Examination Facility (RFEF) of Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA). The tests highlighted the crucial role of plenum volume in fuel rod in FFRD: the burst appearance changed from a pin hole of MMDA3 with the 1cc plenum to a rupture opening of MMDA4 with 5 cc plenum, entailing increase in probable more substantial fragmentation and fuel fragments dispersal. Based on results from MMDA3 and MMDA4, the gas state, which was influenced by both the plenum volume and the gas communication, may significantly affect the amount of fuel fragment dispersion.

High-temperature rupture failure of high-burnup LWR-MOX fuel under a reactivity-initiated accident condition

谷口 良徳; 三原 武; 垣内 一雄; 宇田川 豊

Annals of Nuclear Energy, 195, p.110144_1 - 110144_11, 2024/01

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anucene.2023.110144

A reactivity-initiated accident (RIA)-simulated test CN-1 on a high-burnup 64 GWd/t mixed-oxide fuel rod sheathed with M5 cladding was conducted at the Nuclear Safety Research Reactor, resulting in fuel failure. A small opening with slight ballooning deformation characterized the post-test visual appearance of the test fuel rod. Simulation using fuel performance codes FEMAXI-8/RANNS predicted rod survival under early phase loading induced by pellet-cladding mechanical interaction and subsequent boiling transition, and the cladding surface temperature measured online confirmed the occurrence of boiling transition. The experimental observation and simulation indicate that the failure was caused by a high-temperature rupture following increased rod-internal pressure. The RANNS sensitivity analysis revealed that a mechanical state parameter dedicated to predicting plastic instability might be an effective index for evaluating the risk of rupture failure during RIAs.

Behavior of FeCrAl-ODS cladding tube under loss-of-coolant accident conditions

成川 隆文; 近藤 啓悦; 藤村 由希; 垣内 一雄; 宇田川 豊; 根本 義之

Journal of Nuclear Materials, 582, p.154467_1 - 154467_12, 2023/08

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnucmat.2023.154467

To evaluate the behavior of an oxide-dispersion-strengthened FeCrAl (FeCrAl-ODS) cladding tube under loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA) conditions of light-water reactors (LWRs), the following two laboratory-scale LOCA-simulated tests were performed: the burst and integral thermal shock tests. Four burst and three integral thermal shock tests were performed on unirradiated, stress-relieved FeCrAl-ODS cladding tube specimens, simulating ballooning and rupture, oxidation, and quenching, which were postulated during a LOCA. The burst temperature of the FeCrAl-ODS cladding tube was 200-300 K higher than that of the Zircaloy cladding tube, and the FeCrAl-ODS cladding tube's maximum circumferential strain was smaller than or equal to the Zircaloy-4 cladding tube. These results indicate that the FeCrAl-ODS cladding tube has higher strength at high temperatures than the conventional Zircaloy cladding tube. The FeCrAl-ODS cladding tube did not fracture after being subjected to an axial restraint load of 5000 N, which is more than 10 times higher than the axial restraint load estimated for existing LWRs, during quenching, following isothermal oxidation at 1473 K for 1 h. The FeCrAl-ODS cladding tube was hardly oxidized during this isothermal oxidation condition. However, it melted after a short oxidation at 1673 K and fractured after abnormal oxidation at 1573 K for 1 h. Based on these results, the FeCrAl-ODS cladding tube should not fracture in the time range expected during LOCAs below 1473 K, where no melting or abnormal oxidation occurs.

Double diffusive dissolution model of UO pellet in molten Zr cladding

伊藤 あゆみ*; 山下 晋; 田崎 雄大; 垣内 一雄; 小林 能直*

Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 60(4), p.450 - 459, 2023/04

https://doi.org/10.1080/00223131.2022.2114956

The rapid dissolution of UO in molten Zr that could occur during fuel-cladding liquefaction at high temperatures and its kinetics were reformulated considering the convective mass transfer and the chemical effect at the UO/Zr interface. The mass transfer coefficient of U was obtained as a correlation including the aspect ratio term by CFD analysis. To explain the gap between the rapid dissolution rate observed in the experiments and the density-driven convective mass transfer, we introduced an idea in which the eutectic melting at the UO/Zr interface promotes the grain detachment owing to infiltration of the U-Zr-O liquid into the UO grain boundaries. The developed model was validated with UO-Zr crucible experiments at 2273 and 2373 K. The calculated mass percentage ratios of U/Zr agreed with the measurements and the transition times from rapid saturation to precipitation were consistent with the metallographic observations.

Mechanical property evaluation with nanoindentation method on Zircaloy-4 cladding tube after LOCA-simulated experiment

垣内 一雄; 山内 紹裕*; 天谷 政樹; 宇田川 豊; 北野 剛司*

Proceedings of TopFuel 2022 (Internet), p.409 - 418, 2022/10

In order to examine the influence of cladding microstructural changes upon the mechanical property of the fuel cladding under LOCA conditions in a more direct and quantitative manner, the nanoindentation method has been applied to Zircaloy-4 cladding specimens after LOCA simulated tests (about 1473 K, ECR 20%, quench at 973 K after slow cooling); results for two specimens taken from the rupture opening part and secondary hydriding part were compared. In addition to hardness and Young's modulus, the plastic work fraction that corresponds to the relative ductility was evaluated from the load-displacement curve. The plastic work fraction at the secondary hydriding part was found to be obviously lower than that at the rupture opening part and closer to that in -Zr(O) layers beneath the outer surface. This result from the nanoindentation method agrees with the conventional knowledge about low ductility at the secondary hydriding part.

Irradiation growth behavior and effect of hydrogen absorption of Zr-based cladding alloys for PWR

垣内 一雄; 天谷 政樹; 宇田川 豊

Annals of Nuclear Energy, 171, p.109004_1 - 109004_9, 2022/06

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anucene.2022.109004

In order to understand the dimensional stability of the fuel rod during long-term use in commercial LWRs, an irradiation growth testing in the Halden reactor of Norway was conducted on various fuel cladding materials including the improved Zr alloy. In this paper, the effect of hydrogen, which was absorbed in the cladding tube due to corrosion, on the irradiation growth behavior was evaluated. Comparison between the specimens with or without pre-charged hydrogen revealed that the effect of hydrogen absorption, accelerating irradiation growth, became significant when the hydrogen content exceeded the hydrogen solubility limit in the corresponding irradiation temperature. Analysis based on this understanding derived growth acceleration effect (0.060.01)%/100 ppm, whose denominator is defined as the amount of absorbed hydrogen involved in hydride precipitation under irradiation as a relevant parameter.

Follow-up experimental study on causes of the low-enthalpy failure observed in the reactivity-initiated-accident-simulated test on LWR additive fuels

三原 武; 垣内 一雄; 谷口 良徳; 宇田川 豊

Proceedings of TopFuel 2021 (Internet), 10 Pages, 2021/10

Test OS-1, the reactivity-initiated-accident (RIA) -simulated test on 64 GWd/tU high burnup fuel with ADOPT (chromia-and-alumina-doped UO) pellets resulted in a failure at the lowest fuel enthalpy increase among the tests ever performed at the NSRR on high burnup fuels from 40 to 65 GWd/tU. Roles of both fuel pellets and cladding behaviours in this remarkable observation are being investigated. A comparative RIA-simulated test OS-2 was thus performed on undoped fuel that had been base-irradiated in the identical fuel assembly with the OS-1 rod. The transient records acquired during Test OS-2 indicated that the rod survived without fuel failure. Radially projected hydride lengths in the cladding metallic layer were evaluated from the metallograph images observed in the vicinity of the OS-2 test rod and compared with other failure test cases. The comparison suggested that the hydride morphologies affected the low failure limit of the OS-1 rod and also explains the survival of the OS-2 rod, to some extent. Nevertheless, as the OS-2 rod survived 100 J/g higher peak fuel enthalpy than the OS-1 failure limit, further experimental and analytical studies are desired to pursue other possible causes: additional loading specific to ADOPT pellets, difference in the pellet/cladding bonding condition, and so on.

The Effect of base irradiation on failure behaviors of UO and chromia-alumina additive fuels under simulated reactivity-initiated accidents; A Comparative analysis with FEMAXI-8

宇田川 豊; 三原 武; 谷口 良徳; 垣内 一雄; 天谷 政樹

Annals of Nuclear Energy, 139, p.107268_1 - 107268_9, 2020/05

AA2019-0372.pdf:0.81MB

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anucene.2019.107268

This paper reports a computer-code analysis on the base-irradiation behavior of the chromia-and-alumina-doped BWR rod irradiated to 64 GWd/t in Oskarshamn-3, Sweden, and subjected to the reactivity-initiated-accident (RIA) test OS-1, which resulted in a fuel failure due to pellet-cladding mechanical interaction (PCMI) at the lowest fuel-enthalpy increase in all the BWR tests ever performed. The inverse calculation which utilized post-irradiation examination data as its constraint conditions revealed that the OS-1 rod had very likely experienced more intense PCMI loading due to higher swelling rate during base irradiation than other BWR rods subjected to previous RIA tests and thus had been prone to experience enhanced radial-hydride formation. The significant difference in the cladding hoop-stress more than 50 MPa discriminates the OS-1 rod from other BWR rods and supports the interpretation that enhanced radial-hydrides formation differentiated the PCMI-failure behavior observed in the test OS-1 from the previous BWR-fuel tests.

第31回核燃料部会夏期セミナー開催報告

垣内 一雄

核燃料, (55-1), p.25 - 30, 2019/12

http://www.aesj.or.jp/~fuel/Pdf/kaihou/kaihou_2019_55-1.pdf

本報は、2019年7月1012日に宮城県松島町で開催した、第31回核燃料部会夏期セミナーの概要について述べたものである。

Behavior of high-burnup LWR-MOX fuel under a reactivity-initiated accident condition

谷口 良徳; 宇田川 豊; 三原 武; 天谷 政樹; 垣内 一雄

Proceedings of International Nuclear Fuel Cycle Conference / Light Water Reactor Fuel Performance Conference (Global/Top Fuel 2019) (USB Flash Drive), p.551 - 558, 2019/09

A pulse-irradiation test CN-1 on a high-burnup MOX fuel with M5 cladding was conducted at the Nuclear Safety Research Reactor (NSRR) of Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA). Although the transient signals obtained during the pulse-irradiation test did not show any signs of the occurrence of PCMI failure, the failure of the test fuel rod was confirmed from the visual inspection carried out after test CN-1. Analyses using fuel performance codes FEMAXI-8 and RANNS were also performed in order to investigate the fuel behavior during normal operation and pulse-irradiation regarding the test fuel rod of CN-1, and the results were consistent with this observation result. These experimental and calculation results suggested that the failure of test fuel rod of CN-1 was not caused by hydride-assisted PCMI but high-temperature rupture following the increase in rod internal pressure. The occurrence of this failure mode might be related to the ductility remained in the M5 cladding owing to its low content of the hydrogen absorbed during normal operation.