Nuclear fuel rod grip with modified diagonal spring structures

In a nuclear fuel rod grid including a plurality of inner and outer straps being interleaved with one another to form a matrix of hollow cells, each cell for receiving one fuel rod and being defined by pairs of opposing wall sections of said straps which wall sections are shared with adjacent cells, each cell having a central longitudinal axis, a fuel rod engaging spring structure of resiliently yieldable material being integrally formed on each wall section of said inner straps, said spring structure comprising:

• (a) a pair of spaced apart upper and lower opposite outer portions being integrally attached at their outer ends to said respective wall section, said upper and lower outer portions extending in alignment with one another and in generally diagonal relation to the direction of said central longitudinal axis of said one cell between upper and lower portions of said wall section;
• and
• (b) a middle portion disposed between and integrally connected at its outer ends with respective inner ends of said upper and lower outer portions, said middle portion extending in generally transverse relation to the direction of said central longitudinal axis of said one cell;
• (c) said opposite outer portions from said outer ends thereof extending in inclined fashion relative to said wall section and toward one another into said one cell;
• (d) said opposite outer portions at said inner ends thereof and said middle portion being disposed in the same plane spaced from and extending generally parallel to said wall section;
• (e) said upper and lower outer portions having respective pairs of spaced lateral edges which extend in diagonal relation to said cell axis and are offset from one another in the direction of said cell axis;
• (f) said middle portion having a pair of spaced lateral edges which extend in transverse relation to said cell axis and interconnect said offset pairs of edges of said upper and lower outer portions.