Benjamin Maier

Surface Modification of Fuel Cladding Materials with Integral Fuel BUrnable Absorber Boron

Integral fuel burnable absorgers (IFBA) are added to some rods in the fuel assembly to counteract excessive reactivity. These IFBA elements (usually boron or gadolinium) are presently incorporated in the U)2 pellets either by mixing in the pellets or as coatings on the pellet surface. In either case, the incorporation of ifba into the fuel has to be performed in a nuclear-regulated facility that is physically separated from the main plant. These operations tend to be costly and can add from 20 to 30% to the manufacturing cost of the fuel. The goal of this NEER research project was to develop an alternative approach that involves incorporation of IFBA element boron at the surface of the fuel cladding material.