Technical Paper
Possibilities of Using Hypostoichiometric Uranium Dioxide in Thermionic Fuel Elements
1992-08-03
929238
Advantages of using UO2-X in fuel elements are discussed. Change of the initial uranium dioxide content due to burn-up, themal diffusion, as well as fuel component carry-over through the fuel element cladding and vent system is calculated. It is shown that while the fuel element works, the oxygen coefficient increases. The initial value of O/U=1.990-1.998 providing preservation of the hypostoichiometric content during life time is recommended. The authors results on UO2-X structure investigation under conditions of heating-cooling and long storage, as well as comparative data on free swelling are given besides literature data on UO2-X properties.
