Download or read book US RERTR Program Its Fuel development Activities and Application in the KUHFR written by and published by . This book was released on 1981 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The goals, structure, and accomplishments to date of the Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program are described in detail. Plans and schedules for future program activities are outlined with the effect which these activities may potentially have on the research-reactor community. The fuel-development activities of the program are discussed in detail, with particular emphasis on the new low-enrichment, high-uranium-density fuels which the RERTR Program is developing for application in research reactors in the near future. The results of a joint study program between the RERTR Program and the Kyoto University Research Reactor Institute (KURRI), aimed at converting the Kyoto University High-Flux Reactor (KUHFR) to the use of reduced-enrichment uranium, are presented. It is shown that the study has resulted in a positive decision and in a cooperative, well-structured plan for the KUHFR conversion.
Download or read book Fuel Development Activities of the US RERTR Program Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor written by and published by . This book was released on 1983 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Progress in the development and irradiation testing of high-density fuels for use with low-enriched uranium in research and test reactors is reported. Swelling and blister-threshold temperature data obtained from the examination of miniature fuel plates containing UAl(subscript x), U3O, U3Si2, or U3Si dispersed in an aluminum matrix are presented. Combined with the results of metallurgical examinations, these data show that these four fuel types will perform adequately to full burnup of the 235U contained in the low-enriched fuel. The exothermic reaction of the uranium-silicide fuels with aluminum has been found to occur at about the same temperature as the melting of the aluminum matrix and cladding and to be essentially quenched by the melting endotherm. A new series of miniature fuel plate irradiations is also discussed.
Download or read book RERTR Program Activities Related to the Development and Application of New LEU Fuels Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor Low enriched Uranium written by and published by . This book was released on 1983 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The statue of the U.S. Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program is reviewed. After a brief outline of RERTR Program objectives and goals, program accomplishments are discussed with emphasis on the development, demonstration and application of new LEU fuels. Most program activities have proceeded as planned, and a combination of two silicide fuels (U3Si2-Al and U3Si-Al) holds excellent promise for achieving the long-term program goals. Current plans and schedules project the uranium density of qualified RERTR fuels for plate-type reactors to grow by approximately 1 g U/cm3 each year, from the current 1.7 g U/cm3 to the 7.0 g U/cm3 which will be reached in late 1988. The technical needs of research and test reactors for HEU exports are also forecasted to undergo a gradual but dramatic decline in the coming years.
Download or read book Status of the US RERTR Program written by and published by . This book was released on 1995 with total page 11 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The progress of the Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program is described. The major events, findings, and activities of 1994 are reviewed after a brief summary of the results which the RERTR Program had achieved by the end of 1993 in collaboration with its many international partners. The RERTR Program has moved aggressively to support President Clinton's nonproliferation policy and his goal {open_quotes}to minimize the use of highly-enriched uranium in civil nuclear programs{close_quotes}. An Environmental Assessment which addresses the urgent-relief acceptance of 409 spent fuel elements was completed, and the first shipment of spent fuel elements is scheduled for this month. An Environmental Impact Statement addressing the acceptance of spent research reactor fuel containing enriched uranium of U.S. origin is scheduled for completion by the end of June 1995. The U.S. administration has decided to resume development of high-density LEU research reactor fuels. DOE funding and guidance are expected to begin soon. A preliminary plan for the resumption of fuel development has been prepared and is ready for implementation. The scope and main technical activities of a plan to develop and demonstrate within the next five years the technical means needed to convert Russian-supplied research reactors to LEU fuels was agreed upon by the RERTR Program and four Russian institutes lead by RDIPE. Both Secretary O'Leary and Minister Michailov have expressed strong support for this initiative. Joint studies have made significant progress, especially in assessing the technical and economic feasibility of using reduced enrichment fuels in the SAFARI-I reactor in South Africa and in the Advanced Neutron Source reactor under design at ORNL. Significant progress was achieved on several aspects of producing 99Mo from fission targets utilizing LEU instead of HEU to the achievement of the common goal.
Download or read book The U S RERTR Program Status and Progress written by and published by . This book was released on 1998 with total page 12 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The progress of the Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program since its inception in 1978 is described. A brief summary of the results which the RERTR Program had achieved by the end of 1996 in collaboration with its many international partners is followed by a detailed review of the major events, findings, and activities of 1997. Significant progress has been made during the past year. In the area of U.S. acceptance of spent fuel from foreign research reactors, several shipments have taken place and additional are being planned. Intense fuel development activities are in progress, including procurement of equipment, screening of candidate materials, and production of microplates. Irradiation of the first series of microplates began in August 1997 in the Advanced Test Reactor, in Idaho. Progress has been made in the Russian RERTR program, which aims to develop and demonstrate within five years the technical means needed to convert Russian-supplied research reactors to LEU fuels. The study of an alternative LEU core for the FRM-II design has been extended to address, with favorable results, controversial performance issues which were raised at last year's meeting. Progress was also made on several aspects of producing molybdenum-99 from fission targets utilizing LEU instead of HEU. Various types of targets and processes are being pursued, with FDA approval of an LEU process projected to occur within two years. The feasibility of LEU Fuel conversion for three important DOE research reactors (BMRR, HFBR, and HFIR) has been evaluated by the RERTR program. In spite of the many momentous events which have occurred during the intervening years, and the excellent progress achieved, the most important challenges that the RERTR program faces today are not very different in type from those that were faced during the first RERTR meeting. Now, as then, the most important task is to develop new LEU fuels satisfying requirements which cannot be satisfied by any existing fuel. These new advanced fuels will enable conversion of the reactors which cannot be converted today, ensure better efficiency and performance for all research reactors, and allow the design of more powerful new advanced LEU reactors. As in the past, the success of the RERTR program will depend on free exchange of ideas and information, and on the international friendship and cooperation that have been a trademark of the RERTR program since its inception.
Download or read book The RERTR Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor Program written by and published by . This book was released on 1987 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The progress of the Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program is described. After a brief summary of the results which the RERTR Program, in collaboration with its many international partners, had achieved by the end of 1986, the activities, results, and new developments which occurred in 1987 are reviewed. Irradiation of the second miniplate series, concentrating on U3Si2-Al and U3Si-Al fuels, was completed and postirradiation examinations were performed on many of its miniplates. The whole-core ORR demonstration with U3Si2-Al fuel at 4.8 g U/cm3 was completed at the end of March with excellent results and with 29 elements estimated to have reached at least 40% average burnup. Good progress was made in the area of LEU usage for the production of fission 99Mo, and in the coordination of safety evaluations related to LEU conversions of US university reactors. Planned activities include testing and demonstrating advanced fuels intended to allow use of reduced enrichment uranium in very-high-performance reactors. Two candidate fuels are U3Si-Al with 19.75% enrichment and U3Si2-Al with 45% enrichment. Demonstration of these fuels will include irradiation of full-size elements and, possibly, a full-core demonstration. Achievement of the final program goals is still projected for 1990. This progress could not have been possible without the close international cooperation which has existed from the beginning, and which is essential to the ultimate success of the RERTR Program.
Download or read book The RERTR Program Status and Progress written by and published by . This book was released on 1995 with total page 15 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The progress of the Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program is described. The major events, findings, and activities of 1995 are reviewed after a brief summary of the results which the RERTR Program had achieved by the end of 1994. The revelation that Iraq was on the verge of developing a nuclear weapon at the time of the Gulf War, and that it was planning to do so by extracting HEU from the fuel of its research reactors, has given new impetus and urgency to the RERTR commitment of eliminating HEU use in research and test reactors worldwide. Development of advanced LEU research reactor fuels is scheduled to begin in October 1995. The Russian RERTR program, which aims to develop and demonstrate within the next five years the technical means needed to convert Russian-supplied research reactors to LEU fuels, is now in operation. A Statement of Intent was signed by high US and Chinese officials, endorsing cooperative activities between the RERTR program and Chinese laboratories involved in similar activities. Joint studies of LEU technical feasibility were completed for the SAFARI-I reactor in South Africa and for the ANS reactor in the US. A new study has been initiated for the FRM-II reactor in Germany. Significant progress was made on several aspects of producing 99Mo from fission targets utilizing LEU instead of HEU. A cooperation agreements is in place with the Indonesian BATAN. The first prototypical irradiation of an LEU metal-foil target for 99Mo production was accomplished in Indonesia. The TR-2 reactor, in Turkey, began conversion. SAPHIR, in Switzerland, was shut down. LEU fuel fabrication has begun for the conversion of two more US reactors. Twelve foreign reactors and nine domestic reactors have been fully converted. Approximately 60 % of the work required to eliminate the use of HEU in US-supplied research reactors has been accomplished.
Download or read book The RERTR Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor Program written by and published by . This book was released on 1986 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The progress of the Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program is described. After a brief summary of the results which the RERTR Program, in collaboration with its many international partners, had achieved by the end of 1985, the activities, results, and new developments which occurred in 1986 are reviewed. The second miniplate series, concentrating on U3Si2-Al and U3Si-Al fuels, was expanded and its irradiation continued. Postirradiation examinations of several of these miniplates and of six previously irradiated U3Si2-Al full-size elements were completed with excellent results. The whole-core ORR demonstration with U3Si2-Al fuel at 4.8 g U/cm3 is well under way and due for completion before the end of 1987. DOE removed an important barrier to conversions by announcing that the new LEU fuels will be accepted for reprocessing. New DOE prices for enrichment and reprocessing services were calculated to have minimal effect on HEU reactors, and to reduce by about 8 to 10% the total fuel cycle costs of LEU reactors. New program activities include preliminary feasibility studies of LEU use in DOE reactors, evaluation of the feasibility to use LEU targets for the production of fission-product 99Mo, and responsibility for coordinating safety evaluations related to LEU conversions of US university reactors, as required by NRC. Achievement of the final program goals is projected for 1990. This progress could not have been achieved without close international cooperation, whose continuation and intensification are essential to the achievement of the ultimate goals of the RERTR Program.
Download or read book Recent Developments of the US RERTR Program written by and published by . This book was released on 1983 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The status of the US Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program is reviewed. After a brief outline of the RERTR Program objectives, goals and past accomplishments, emphasis is placed on the developments which took place during 1983 and on current program plans and schedules. Most program activities have proceeded as planned and a combination of two silicide fuels (U3Si2-Al and U3Si-Al) was found to hold excellent promise for achieving the long-term program goals. A modification of the program plan, including the development and demonstration of those fuels, was prepared and is now being implemented. The uranium density of qualified RERTR fuels for plate-type reactors is forecasted to grow by approximately 1 g U/cm3 each year, from the current 1.7 g U/cm3 to the 7.0 g U/cm3 which will be reached in 1988. The technical needs of research reactors for HEU exports are also forecasted to undergo a gradual and dramatic decline in the coming years.
Download or read book The RERTR Program written by and published by . This book was released on 1998 with total page 13 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper describes the progress achieved by the Reduced Enrichment for Research and Test Reactors (RERTR) Program in collaboration with its many international partners since its inception in 1978. A brief summary of the results that the program had attained by the end of 1997 is followed by a detailed review of the major events, findings, and activities that took place in 1998. The past year was characterized by exceptionally important accomplishments and events for the RERTR program. Four additional shipments of spent fuel from foreign research reactors were accepted by the U.S. Altogether, 2,231 spent fuel assemblies from foreign research reactors have been received by the U.S. under the acceptance policy. Fuel development activities began to yield solid results. Irradiations of the first two batches of microplates were completed. Preliminary postirradiation examinations of these microplates indicate excellent irradiation behavior of some of the fuel materials that were tested. These materials hold the promise of achieving the pro am goal of developing LEU research reactor fuels with uranium density in the 8-9 g /cm3 range. Progress was made in the Russian RERTR program, which aims to develop and demonstrate the technical means needed to convert Russian-supplied research reactors to LEU fuels. Feasibility studies for converting to LEU fuel four Russian-designed research reactors (IR-8 in Russia, Budapest research reactor in Hungary, MARIA in Poland, and WWR-SM in Uzbekistan) were completed. A new program activity began to study the feasibility of converting three Russian plutonium production reactors to the use of low-enriched U02-Al dispersion fuel, so that they can continue to produce heat and electricity without producing significant amounts of plutonium. The study of an alternative LEU core for the FRM-II design has been extended to address, with favorable results, the transient performance of the core under hypothetical accident conditions. A major milestone was accomplished in the development of a process to produce molybdenum-99 from fission targets utilizing LEU instead of HEU. Targets containing LEU metal foils were irradiated in the RAS-GAS reactor at BATAN, Indonesia, and molybdenum-99 was successfully extracted through the ensuing process. These are exciting times for the program and for all those involved in it, and last year's successes augur well for the future. However, as in the past, the success of the RERTR program will depend on the international friendship and cooperation that have always been its trademark.
Download or read book US RERTR Program written by and published by . This book was released on 1984 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The status of the Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program is reviewed. After a brief review of the accomplishments which the RERTR Program, in cooperation with its many international partners, had achieved by the end of 1983 in the area of LEU research reactor fuels development and application, emphasis is placed on the RERTR Program developments which took place during 1984 and on current plans and schedules. The RERTR progress in 1984 has been significant, with solid accomplishments and few surprises. Most LEU U3Si2-Al irradiation tests with 4.8 g U/cm3 have been successfully completed, and contract negotiations are under way for the procurement of a whole-core demonstration of this fuel in the ORR. The demonstration is to begin in mid-1985 and to last for approximately eighteen months. Qualification of U3Si2-Al fuel with 7 g U/cm3 is scheduled for 1989. International cooperation among fuel developers, commercial vendors, and reactor operators has been essential to the progress which has been achieved. With continued international cooperation, it will be feasible to significantly reduce HEU usage in research reactors in the next few years.
Download or read book Development and Transfer of Fuel Fabrication and Utilization Technology for Research Reactors written by and published by . This book was released on 1982 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Approximately 300 research reactors supplied with US-enriched uranium are currently in operation in about 40 countries, with a variety of types, sizes, experiment capabilities and applications. Despite the usefulness and popularity of research reactors, relatively few innovations in their core design have been made in the last fifteen years. The main reason can be better understood by reviewing briefly the history of research reactor fuel technology and enrichment levels. Stringent requirements on the enrichment of the uranium to be used in research reactors were considered and a program was launched to assist research reactors in continuing their operation with the new requirements and with minimum penalties. The goal of the new program, the Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program, is to develop the technical means to utilize LEU instead of HEU in research reactors without significant penalties in experiment performance, operating costs, reactor modifications, and safety characteristics. This paper reviews briefly the RERTR Program activities with special emphasis on the technology transfer aspects of interest to this conference.
Download or read book Reduced Enrichment for Research and Test Reactors written by and published by . This book was released on 1988 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The international effort to develop new research reactor fuel materials and designs based on the use of low-enriched uranium, instead of highly-enriched uranium, has made much progress during the eight years since its inception. To foster direct communication and exchange of ideas among the specialist in this area, the Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program, at the Argonne National Laboratory, sponsored this meeting as the ninth of a series which began in 1978. All previous meetings of this series are listed on the facing page. The focus of this meeting was on the LEU fuel demonstration which was in progress at the Oak Ridge Research (ORR) reactor, not far from where the meeting was held. The visit to the ORR, where a silicide LEU fuel with 4.8 g A/cm3 was by then in routine use, illustrated how far work has progressed.
Download or read book Overview of Reduced Enrichment Fuels written by and published by . This book was released on 1987 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The US Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) Program was established in 1978 to provide the technical means to operate research and test reactors with low enrichment uranium (LEU) fuels without significant penalty in experiment performance, operation costs, component modifications, or safety characteristics. This paper discusses relevant developments in fuel developments. 9 refs., 1 tab.
Download or read book RERTR Fuel Developmemt and Qualification Plan written by and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In late 2003 it became evident that U-Mo aluminum fuels under development exhibited significant fuel performance problems under the irradiation conditions required for conversion of most high-powered research reactors. Solutions to the fuel performance issue have been proposed and show promise in early testing. Based on these results, a Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor (RERTR) program strategy has been mapped to allow generic fuel qualification to occur prior to the end of FY10 and reactor conversion to occur prior to the end of FY14. This strategy utilizes a diversity of technologies, test conditions, and test types. Scoping studies using miniature fuel plates will be completed in the time frame of 2006-2008. Irradiation of larger specimens will occur in the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) in the United States, the Belgian Reactor-2 (BR2) reactor in Belgium, and in the OSIRIS reactor in France in 2006-2009. These scoping irradiation tests provide a large amount of data on the performance of advanced fuel types under irradiation and allow the down selection of technology for larger scale testing during the final stages of fuel qualification. In conjunction with irradiation testing, fabrication processes must be developed and made available to commercial fabricators. The commercial fabrication infrastructure must also be upgraded to ensure a reliable low enriched uranium (LEU) fuel supply. Final qualification of fuels will occur in two phases. Phase I will obtain generic approval for use of dispersion fuels with density less than 8.5 g-U/cm3. In order to obtain this approval, a larger scale demonstration of fuel performance and fabrication technology will be necessary. Several Materials Test Reactor (MTR) plate-type fuel assemblies will be irradiated in both the High Flux Reactor (HFR) and the ATR (other options include the BR2 and Russian Research Reactor, Dmitrovgrad, Russia [MIR] reactors) in 2008-2009. Following postirradiation examination, a report detailing very-high density fuel behavior will be submitted to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Assuming acceptable fuel behavior, it is anticipated that NRC will issue a Safety Evaluation Report granting generic approval of the developed fuels based on the qualification report. It is anticipated that Phase I of fuel qualification will be completed prior to the end of FY10. Phase II of the fuel qualification requires development of fuels with density greater than 8.5 g-U/cm3. This fuel is required to convert the remaining few reactors that have been identified for conversion. The second phase of the fuel qualification effort includes both dispersion fuels with fuel particle volume loading on the order of 65 percent, and monolithic fuels. Phase II presents a larger set of technical unknowns and schedule uncertainties than phase I. The final step in the fuel qualification process involves insertion of lead test elements into the converting reactors. Each reactor that plans to convert using the developed high-density fuels will develop a reactor specific conversion plan based upon the reactor safety basis and operating requirements. For some reactors (FRM-II, High-Flux Isotope Reactor [HFIR], and RHF) conversion will be a one-step process. In addition to the U.S. fuel development effort, a Russian fuel development strategy has been developed. Contracts with Russian Federation institutes in support of fuel development for Russian are in place.
Download or read book Summary Report on Fuel Development and Miniplate Fabrication for the RERTR Program 1978 to 1990 written by and published by . This book was released on 1995 with total page 244 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This report summarizes the efforts of the Fabrication Technology Section at Argonne National Laboratory in the program of Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactors (RERTR). The main objective of this program was to reduce the amount of high enriched ((almost equal to)93% 235U) uranium (HEU) used in nonpower reactors. Conversion from low-density (0.8--1.6 g U/cm3) HEU fuel elements to highly loaded (up to 7 g U/cm3) low-enrichment (
Download or read book Conversion of Research and Test Reactors to Low enriched Uranium LEU Fuel written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Science and Technology. Subcommittee on Energy Development and Applications and published by . This book was released on 1985 with total page 1968 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
