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2025 ANS Winter Conference & Expo
November 9–12, 2025
Washington, DC|Washington Hilton
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Researchers use one-of-a-kind expertise and capabilities to test fuels of tomorrow
At the Idaho National Laboratory Hot Fuel Examination Facility, containment box operator Jake Maupin moves a manipulator arm into position around a pencil-thin nuclear fuel rod. He is preparing for a procedure that he and his colleagues have practiced repeatedly in anticipation of this moment in the hot cell.
Yeon Soo Kim, Gerard L. Hofman, James L. Snelgrove
Nuclear Technology | Volume 153 | Number 1 | January 2006 | Pages 18-24
Technical Paper | Fuel Cycle and Management | doi.org/10.13182/NT06-A3686
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Fission gas release and fuel expansion of irradiated uranium-zirconium hydride fuel were measured during fuel heating to melting. The first indication of melting occurred at approximately the uranium-cladding eutectic temperature, whereas complete melting took place at the U metal melting point. Fission gas release began with the onset of uranium-cladding melting and gradually increased with rising temperature. Two sharp peaks in the fission gas release were observed corresponding to the events of uranium-zirconium eutectic melting and uranium melting. The fractional release was much higher than that measured previously for fuel without cladding at comparable temperatures.