Microstructural observation of simulated fuel kernels for Pu-burner high temperature gas-cooled reactor in Japan

Aihara, Jun; Ueta, Shohei; Honda, Masaki*; Kasahara, Seiji; Okamoto, Koji*

JAEA-Research 2024-012, 98 Pages, 2025/02

JAEA-Research-2024-012.pdf:32.24MB

Concept of Pu-burner high temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) was proposed for the purpose of more safely reducing amount of recovered Pu. In Pu-burner HTGR concept, coated fuel particle (CFP), with ZrC coated yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ) containing PuO (PuO-YSZ) small particle and with tri-structural isotropic (TRISO) coating, is employed for very high burn-up and high nuclear proliferation resistance. ZrC layer is oxygen getter. In research project of Pu-burner HTGR carried out from fiscal year of 2014 to fiscal year of 2017, simulated CFPs were fabricated using Ce to simulate Pu. Moreover, simulated fuel compacts were fabricated using fabricated simulated CFPs. In this report, results of microstructural observation of CeO-YSZ and ZrC layer at each fabrication step are reported.

SiC sensor wire test by heavy ion beam irradiation, 2

Meigo, Shinichiro; Yamaguchi, Yuji

Proceedings of 21st Annual Meeting of Particle Accelerator Society of Japan (Internet), p.853 - 858, 2024/10

https://www.pasj.jp/web_publish/pasj2024/proceedings/PDF/FRP0/FRP006.pdf

no abstracts in English

Proceedings of the 12th International Conference on Nuclear Criticality Safety (ICNC2023); October 1-6, 2023, Sendai International Center, Sendai, Miyagi, Japan

Suyama, Kenya; Gunji, Satoshi; Watanabe, Tomoaki; Araki, Shohei; Fukuda, Kodai; Shimada, Kazuya; Fujita, Tatsuya; Ueki, Taro; Nguyen, H.

JAEA-Conf 2024-001, 40 Pages, 2024/07

JAEA-Conf-2024-001.pdf:1.28MB
JAEA-Conf-2024-001-appendix(CD-ROM).zip:163.97MB

The 12th International Conference on Nuclear Criticality Safety (ICNC2023) was held from October 1 to October 6, 2023, at the Sendai International Center (Aobayama, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi-prefecture 980-0856, Japan), organized by Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) and co-organized by the Reactor Physics Division of the Atomic Energy Society of Japan (AESJ) and the Nuclear Energy Agency of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD/NEA). 224 presentations passed peer review and 273 technical session registrations, bringing the total number of registered participants to 289, including accompanying persons. Technical tours were also conducted to i) Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station of TEPCO holdings and Interim Storage Facility Information Center, ii) Nuclear Science Research Institute of JAEA (STACY Renewable Reactor and FCA), iii) NanoTerasu of Tohoku University (synchrotron radiation facility) and Onagawa Nuclear Power Station of Tohoku Electric Power Co., Inc. This report summarizes the conference and compiles the papers that were presented and agreed to be published in the Proceedings.

A Science-based mixed oxide property model for developing advanced oxide nuclear fuels

Kato, Masato; Oki, Takumi; Watanabe, Masashi; Hirooka, Shun; Vauchy, R.; Ozawa, Takayuki; Uwaba, Tomoyuki; Ikusawa, Yoshihisa; Nakamura, Hiroki; Machida, Masahiko

Journal of the American Ceramic Society, 107(5), p.2998 - 3011, 2024/05

https://doi.org/10.1111/jace.19609

Nuclear data as foundation of nuclear research and development

Fukahori, Tokio; Nakayama, Shinsuke; Katabuchi, Tatsuya*; Shigyo, Nobuhiro*

Nihon Genshiryoku Gakkai-Shi ATOMO, 65(12), p.726 - 727, 2023/12

https://doi.org/10.3327/jaesjb.65.12_726

The Investigative Committee on Nuclear Data investigates and observes global trends in nuclear research and development and conducts comprehensive examinations of Japanese nuclear data activities from a broader perspective, as well as cooperation with domestic and foreign academic institutions in a wide range of fields other than the Atomic Energy Society. We aim to establish a system for communication, information exchange, and interdisciplinary cooperation. In this report, we will report on three of the main activities for the 2021-2022 term: a request list site for nuclear data, human resource development, and roadmap production.

SiC-based semiconductor switch power supply for kicker magnets

Takayanagi, Tomohiro; Ono, Ayato; Horino, Koki*; Ueno, Tomoaki*; Sugita, Moe; Kinsho, Michikazu; Tokuchi, Akira*; Ikoma, Naoya*; Nakata, Kyosuke*; Kamezaki, Hiroaki*; et al.

Proceedings of 20th Annual Meeting of Particle Accelerator Society of Japan (Internet), p.235 - 239, 2023/08

The kicker system used for injection and extraction of accelerated beams requires a pulsed power supply with high speed and high repetition rate of short pulses acting only on a specified bunch of beams. We have developed a semiconductor switch power supply with a rated output of 40kV/2kA using SiC-MOSFETs, one of the next-generation power semiconductors. Then, we reconfigured this semiconductor switch power supply into two units with 20kV/2kA output and conducted energization tests using an actual kicker electromagnet. It was also demonstrated with magnetic field waveforms that the flat-top correction function of this power supply can suppress ringing in the waveform by less than half. This achievement enables the reduction of the kick angle difference caused by ringing, which is a factor in beam loss. In the presentation, specifications, test equipment, and evaluation results of the developed SiC semiconductor switch power supply will be reported.

Step unbunching phenomenon on 4H-SiC (0001) surface during hydrogen etching

Sakakibara, Ryotaro*; Bao, J.*; Yuhara, Keisuke*; Matsuda, Keita*; Terasawa, Tomoo; Kusunoki, Michiko*; Norimatsu, Wataru*

Applied Physics Letters, 123(3), p.031603_1 - 031603_4, 2023/07

https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0153565

We here report a step unbunching phenomenon, which is the inverse of the phenomenon of step bunching. When a 4H-SiC (0001) surface is annealed at a high temperature, step bunching arises due to the different velocities of the step motion in adjacent steps, resulting in steps with a height of more than several nanometers. We found that the bunched steps, thus, obtained by hydrogen etching in an Ar/H atmosphere were "unbunched" into lower height steps when annealed subsequently at lower temperatures. This unbunching phenomenon can be well explained by the consequence of the competition between energetics and kinetics. Our findings provide another approach for the surface smoothing of SiC by hydrogen etching and may give significant insight into the application of SiC power devices and two-dimensional materials growth techniques in general.

Establishing an evaluation method for the aging phenomenon by physical force in fuel debris

Suzuki, Seiya; Arai, Yoichi; Okamura, Nobuo; Watanabe, Masayuki

Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 60(7), p.839 - 848, 2023/07

https://doi.org/10.1080/00223131.2022.2159559

The fuel debris, consisting of nuclear fuel materials and reactor structural materials, generated in the accident of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant can become deteriorated like rocks under the changes of environmental temperature. Although the fuel debris have been cooled by water for 10 years, they are affected by seasonal and/or day-and-night temperature changes. Therefore, in evaluating the aging behavior of the fuel debris, it is essential to consider the changes in environmental temperature. Assuming that the fuel debris are deteriorated, radioactive substances that have recently undergone micronization could be eluted into the cooling water, and such condition may affect defueling methods. We focused on the effect of repeated changes in environmental temperature on the occurrence of cracks, and an accelerated test using simulated fuel debris was carried out. The length of the crack increases with increasing number of heat cycle; therefore, the fuel debris become brittle by stress caused by thermal expansion and contraction. In conclusion, it was confirmed that the mechanical deterioration of the fuel debris is similar to that of rocks or minerals, and it became possible to predict changes in the length of the crack in the simulated fuel debris and environmental model.

Development of thin SiC neutron detector with high radiation resistance (Contract research); FY2020 Nuclear Energy Science & Technology and Human Resource Development Project

Collaborative Laboratories for Advanced Decommissioning Science; Kyoto University*

JAEA-Review 2022-068, 90 Pages, 2023/05

JAEA-Review-2022-068.pdf:3.55MB

The Collaborative Laboratories for Advanced Decommissioning Science (CLADS), Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA), had been conducting the Nuclear Energy Science & Technology and Human Resource Development Project (hereafter referred to "the Project") in FY2020. The Project aims to contribute to solving problems in the nuclear energy field represented by the decommissioning of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, Inc. (TEPCO). For this purpose, intelligence was collected from all over the world, and basic research and human resource development were promoted by closely integrating/collaborating knowledge and experiences in various fields beyond the barrier of conventional organizations and research fields. The sponsor of the Project was moved from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology to JAEA since the newly adopted proposals in FY2018. On this occasion, JAEA constructed a new research system where JAEA-academia collaboration is reinforced and medium-to-long term research/development and human resource development contributing to the decommissioning are stably and consecutively implemented. Among the adopted proposals in FY2018, this report summarizes the research results of the "Development of thin SiC neutron detector with high radiation resistance" conducted from FY2018 to FY2021 (this contract was extended to FY2021). Since the final year of this proposal was FY2021, the results for four fiscal years were summarized. In the works for debris retrieval, it is required to install subcritical surveillance radiation monitors that can surely work for long time under extremely high gamma-ray radiation environment. However, there have been problems such as remote control of conventional neutron detectors is difficult because heavy radiation shields are needed.

Research on improvement of HTGR core power-density, 4; Feasibility study for a reactor core

Okita, Shoichiro; Mizuta, Naoki; Takamatsu, Kuniyoshi; Goto, Minoru; Yoshida, Katsumi*; Nishimura, Yosuke*; Okamoto, Koji*

Proceedings of 30th International Conference on Nuclear Engineering (ICONE30) (Internet), 10 Pages, 2023/05