Fuel assembly for nuclear reactor and manufacturing method thereof
AssigneeHitachi, Ltd.
InventorsKiyomi Nakamura, Masahisa Inagaki, Syouko Tanikoshi, Hideo Maki, Tsuneyuki Hashimoto
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Abstract
A fuel assembly avoiding the generation of irradiation damage, a Zr alloy used for the same, and a manufacturing method thereof. According to one embodiment, a super-saturated solid-solution Zr alloy powder having a crystal grain size in the range of 1000 nm or less and containing Fe, Ni and Cr is prepared by mechanical alloying, and the alloy powder is subjected to HIP, hot-working, cold-working and final heat-treatment.
Claims32
A fuel assembly for a nuclear reactor comprising fuel assembly elements, said fuel assembly elements comprising:
- a fuel sheath tube;
- a spacer tier holding said fuel sheath tube;
- and
- a channel box for containing a plurality of said sheath tubes,
- wherein at least one fuel assembly element comprises a Zr-containing matrix alloy, wherein an average crystal grain size of said matrix alloy is in the range of 1000 nm or less.
A fuel assembly element for a nuclear reactor comprising a Zr-containing matrix alloy comprising an average crystal grain size of 1000 nm or less.
A fuel assembly element manufacturing method comprising:
- a) mechanically mixing a Zr-containing metal and an alloying element, the alloying element being chosen from a group consisting of:
- Fe, Cr, Ni, Nb, Mo, Te, Bi, and Sn, whereby a Zr alloy is produced;
- b) subjecting the Zr alloy to an isostatic pressure, whereby a pressure-treated Zr alloy is produced;
- c) crystallizing the pressure-treated Zr alloy in a temperature range of between a crystallization temperature of the pressure-treated Zr alloy and a maximum crystallization temperature, said maximum crystallization temperature being 200 degrees C. above the crystallization temperature of the pressure-treated Zr alloy, whereby a Zr matrix alloy is produced;
- d) forming the Zr matrix alloy into a shape of the fuel assembly element.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.