Jan-Fong Jue

Phase constituents and microstructure changes in RERTR fuel plate assemblies as functions of temperature and duration of hot-isostatic pressing (HIP) during fabrication were examined. The HIP process was carried out as functions of temperature (520, 540, 560 and 580 °C for 90 min) and time (45–345 min at 560 °C) to bond 6061 Al-alloy to the Zr diffusion barrier that had been co-rolled with U-10 wt.% Mo (U10Mo) fuel monolith prior to the HIP process. Scanning and transmission electron microscopies were employed to examine the phase constituents, microstructure and layer thickness of interaction products from interdiffusion. At the interface between the U10Mo and Zr, following the co-rolling, the UZr2 phase was observed to develop adjacent to Zr, and the α-U phase was found between the UZr2 and U10Mo, while the Mo2Zr was found as precipitates mostly within the α-U phase. The phase constituents and thickness of the interaction layer at the U10Mo-Zr interface remained unchanged regardless of HIP processing variation. Observable growth due to HIP was only observed for the (Al,Si)3Zr phase found at the Zr/AA6061 interface, however, with a large activation energy of 457 ± 28 kJ/mole. Thus, HIP can be carried to improve the adhesion quality of fuel plate without concern for the excessive growth of the interaction layer, particularly at the U10Mo-Zr interface with the α-U, Mo2Zr, and UZr2 phases.

The starting microstructure of a dispersion fuel plate will impact the overall performance of the plate during irradiation. To improve the understanding of the as-fabricated microstructures of U–Mo dispersion fuel plates, particularly the interaction layers that can form between the fuel particles and the matrix, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analyses have been performed on samples from depleted U–7Mo (U–7Mo) dispersion fuel plates with either Al–2 wt.% Si(Al–2Si) or AA4043 alloy matrix. It was observed that in the thick interaction layers, U(Al, Si)3 and U6Mo4Al43 were present, and in the thin interaction layers, (U, Mo) (Al, Si)3, U(Al, Si)4, U3Si3Al2, U3Si5, and possibly USi-type phases were observed. The U3Si3Al2 phase contained some Mo. Based on the results of this investigation, the time that a dispersion fuel plate is exposed to a relatively high temperature during fabrication will impact the nature of the interaction layers around the fuel particles. Uniformly thin, Si-rich layers will develop around the U–7Mo particles for shorter exposure times, and thicker, Si-depleted layers will develop for the longer exposure times.

High-density uranium (U) alloys with an increased concentration of U are being examined for the development of research and test reactors with low enriched metallic fuels. The U–Mo fuel alloy dispersed in Al–Si alloy has attracted particular interest for this application. This paper reports our detailed characterization results of as-fabricated and annealed (475 °C for 4 h) U–Mo dispersion fuels in Al–Si matrix with a Si concentration of 2 and 5 wt.%, named as “As2Si”, “As5Si”, “An2Si”, “An5Si” accordingly. Techniques employed for the characterization include scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy with specimen prepared by focused ion beam in situ lift-out. Fuel plates with Al–5 wt.% Si matrix consistently yielded thicker interaction layers developed between U–Mo particles and Al–Si matrix, than those with Al–2 wt.% Si matrix, given the same processing parameters. A single layer of interaction zone was observed in as-fabricated samples (i.e., “As2Si”, “As5Si”), and this layer mainly consisted of U3Si3Al2 phase. The annealed samples contained a two-layered interaction zone, with a Si-rich layer near the U–Mo side, and an Al-rich layer near the Al–Si matrix side. The U3Si5 appeared as the main phase in the Si-rich layer in “An2Si” sample, while both U3Si5 and U3Si3Al2 were identified in sample “An5Si”. The Al-rich layer in sample “An2Si” was amorphous, whereas that in sample “An5Si” mostly consisted of crystalline U(Al,Si)3, along with a small fraction of U(Al,Si)4 and U6Mo4Al43 phases. The influence of Si on the diffusion and reaction in the development of interaction layers in U(Mo)/Al(Si) is discussed in the light of growth-controlling mechanisms and irradiation performance.