Method for fabrication of fully ceramic microencapsulation nuclear fuel

Abstract

Currently, the commercial fuel of choice, UO2-zircaloy, is economical due to an established and simple fabrication process. However, the alternatives to the UO2-zircaloy that may improve on system safety are sought. The fully ceramic microencapsulated (FCM) fuel system that is potentially inherently safe fuel and is an improvement on the UO2-zircaloy system is prohibitively expensive because of the known methods to produce it. Disclosed herein is a new production route and fixturing that produces identical or superior FCM fuel consistent with mass production by providing a plurality of tristructural-isotropic fuel particles; mixing the plurality of tristructural-isotropic fuel particles with ceramic powder to form a mixture; placing the mixture in a die; and applying a current to the die so as to sinter the mixture by direct current sintering into a fuel element.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.