Nuclear fuel in generation II and III reactors: research issues related to high burn-up

Synthesis and characterization of Th1−xLnxO2−x/2 mixed-oxides

“…As an example, the possibility to reduce the radiotoxicity of waste in the current nuclear fuel cycle by incorporating the minor actinides in new UO 2 -or ThO 2 -based fuels then performing their transmutation in fast neutron reactors is currently examined [11][12][13]. Likewise, ThO 2 -Er 2 O 3 -PuO 2 or ThO 2 -Gd 2 O 3 -PuO 2 ternary systems were recently envisaged as new fuel elements [6,7].…”

“…REE-doped thoria (REE = rare-earth element) is of great interest in view of its promising applications in various areas of energy technology such as oxygen sensors [1][2][3][4] or as potential nuclear fuel in several future concepts [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12]. Indeed, due to the promising resources of thorium ores and to the possibility to achieve a nuclear fuel cycle which considerably reduces the amount of longlive radioactive wastes, a renewal of interest of thoria-based nuclear fuel cycles recently emerged.…”

Grain growth and pore coarsening in dense nano‐crystalline UO2+x fuel pellets

“…The formation mechanism of HBS is not yet well understood, and it is generally believed to be a competition between radiation‐induced grain subdivision and radiation/thermally‐induced grain coarsening. The unique size and distribution of pores in HBS further complicate the stability of HBS at thermal and irradiation conditions, coupled with the complexity of fuel chemistry evolution into a more hyper‐stoichiometric composition upon uranium burning . The microstructure evolution and grain coarsening have profound impacts on fuel properties such as thermal‐mechanical properties, fuel swelling, and fission gas retention capability.…”

“…The unique size and distribution of pores in HBS further complicate the stability of HBS at thermal and irradiation conditions, coupled with the complexity of fuel chemistry evolution into a more hyper-stoichiometric composition upon uranium burning. 3 The microstructure evolution and grain coarsening have profound impacts on fuel properties such as thermal-mechanical properties, fuel swelling, and fission gas retention capability.…”

Toward Defect Engineering Strategies to Optimize Energy and Electronic Materials

“…Nuclear energy is potentially important for the future energy mix given the need to address the increasing global energy demand and simultaneously reduce CO 2 emissions [11][12][13][14][15]. Nuclear materials are subjected to extreme conditions and the detailed understanding of their properties often at the atomistic scale is necessary to ensure their high performance and more importantly their safety.…”