CERMET FUEL ELEMENT AND FABRICATION AND APPLICATIONS THEREOF, INCLUDING IN THERMAL PROPULSION REACTOR

CERMET fuel element includes a fuel meat of consolidated ceramic fuel particles (preferably refractory-metal coated HALEU fuel kernels) and an array of axially-oriented coolant flow channels. Formation and lateral positions of coolant flow channels in the fuel meat are controlled during manufacturin...

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Bibliographische Detailangaben
Hauptverfasser:	JOGERST, James D, BARRINGER, Eric A
Format:	Patent
Sprache:	eng ; fre ; ger
Schlagworte:	AIRCRAFT ALLOYS AVIATION BLASTING CASTING CHEMISTRY COMBUSTION ENGINES COSMONAUTICS FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS HEATING HOT-GAS OR COMBUSTION-PRODUCT ENGINE PLANTS JET-PROPULSION PLANTS LIGHTING MAKING METALLIC POWDER MANUFACTURE OF ARTICLES FROM METALLIC POWDER MECHANICAL ENGINEERING METALLURGY NUCLEAR ENGINEERING NUCLEAR PHYSICS NUCLEAR POWER PLANT NUCLEAR REACTORS PERFORMING OPERATIONS PHYSICS POWDER METALLURGY TRANSPORTING TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS VEHICLES OR EQUIPMENT THEREFOR WEAPONS WORKING METALLIC POWDER
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Beschreibung
Zusammenfassung:	CERMET fuel element includes a fuel meat of consolidated ceramic fuel particles (preferably refractory-metal coated HALEU fuel kernels) and an array of axially-oriented coolant flow channels. Formation and lateral positions of coolant flow channels in the fuel meat are controlled during manufacturing by spacer structures that include ceramic fuel particles. In one embodiment, a coating on a sacrificial rod (the rod being subsequently removed) forms the coolant channel and the spacer structures are affixed to the coating; in a second embodiment, a metal tube forms the coolant channel and the spacer structures are affixed to the metal tube. The spacer structures laterally position the coolant channels in spaced-apart relation and are consolidated with the ceramic fuel particles to form CERMET fuel meat of a fuel element, which are subsequently incorporated into fuel assemblies that are distributively arranged in a moderator block within a nuclear fission reactor, in particular for propulsion.