Modeling porosity migration in LWR and fast reactor MOX fuel using the finite element method

Analysis of fabrication and crack-induced porosity migration in mixed oxide fuels for sodium fast reactors by the finite element method

“…) is conceptually similar to those proposed in previous works on the subject. Sticking to those employing the finite element method, and focusing on the most recent publications [14,17] regarding the BISON fuel performance code, the main difference is found in the pore advection equation and in the numerical strategy to couple energy and pore advection equations.…”

“…In the light of its importance in determining fuel performance of mixed oxide fuels in fast reactor conditions, models have been developed along the years [1,[5][6][7] and included in fuel performance codes to account for porosity migration [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17]. Recent benchmark exercises [18] underlined the need to ameliorate models on pore migration, showing how the predictions on the central hole size are scattered and not seldom inaccurate.…”

“…The aforementioned codes resort either on finite differences/volumes method (e.g., GERMINAL [15] and TRANSURANUS [8]) or on the finite element method (e.g., CEDAR [13] and BISON [14,17]) to solve the equations governing the migration of porosity. The solution of the (pure) advection equation by the standard Galerkin Finite Element Method (G-FEM), resorting on a centered scheme for the discretization of gradient operator, is known to generate spurious spatial oscillations (see for example [20]).…”

“…As for the stabilization techniques, the solution of the pore advection equation is stabilized by two techniques, namely the Streamline-Upwind (SU) and Streamline-Upwind/Petrov-Galerkin (SUPG) schemes [22]. A critical comparison to a modern, finiteelement-based code (BISON) is presented and discussed on the example case of as-fabricated porosity migration published in [14].…”

An Algorithm to Generate Synthetic 3D Microstructures from 2D Exemplars

“…33 Additionally, this algorithm could be incorporated into advanced finite element modeling tools. 34 With this approach, the incorporation of embedded sensors into additively-manufactured parts can be evaluated.…”