ML20050P102
| ML20050P102 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Issue date: | 02/25/2020 |
| From: | NRC/OCM |
| To: | |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20002B811 | List: |
| References | |
| M200225 | |
| Download: ML20050P102 (11) | |
Text
U.S. Department of Energys Andrew Griffith Accident Tolerant Fuel Program Deputy Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Fuel Cycle U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Supply Chain Briefing on Accident Tolerant Fuel Office of Nuclear Energy February 25, 2020 U.S. Department of Energy
Outline
- Background and History
- Our Industrial Team, National Laboratories, Universities, and International Collaborators
- Timeline for the Near-Term Coated Clad Concept (courtesy of NEI)
- Final Observations 2 energy.gov/ne
Congressional Request Post Fukushima, 2012 Following the accident at Fukushima, Congress requested the Department to start developing fuel with enhanced accident tolerance that can be used in existing light water reactors.
- The Committee...urges that special technical emphasis and funding priority be given to activities aimed at the development and near-term qualification of melt-down resistant, accident-tolerant nuclear fuels that would enhance the safety of present and future generations of light water reactors (Senate Appropriations Committee Report for FY 2012, S. 112-75) 3 energy.gov/ne
Defining Accident Tolerant Fuel Fuels with enhanced accident tolerance are those that, in comparison with the standard UO2 - Zr system, can tolerate loss of active cooling in the core for a considerably longer time period (depending on the LWR system and accident scenario) while maintaining or improving the fuel performance during normal operations.
4 4 energy.gov/ne
Program Participants The Department of Energy supports all elements of the accident tolerant fuel program and facilitates coordination among program participants.
- Fuel vendor teams
- National laboratories
- Reactor owner/operators
- Universities
- International collaborations Participating in independent regulatory oversight role:
- U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 5 energy.gov/ne
Our Team - Industrial Accident Tolerant Fuel Concepts Under Development Framatome General Electric Westinghouse
- Cr-coated M5 - Coated Zr - Cr-coated Zirlo cladding cladding cladding
- Doped UO2 for - Doped UO2 - Doped UO2 improved thermal - Iron-based - SiC cladding conductivity and cladding (FeCrAl) - High uranium performance - ODS variants for density fuel
- SiC cladding improved strength 6 energy.gov/ne
Our Team: The National Laboratories Test Facilities High Flux Isotope Reactor Severe Accident Test Station Advanced Test Reactor Transient Reactor Test Facility Examination Facilities Hot Fuel Examination Facility Irradiated Materials Characterization Laboratory Thermal Property Cell within IMCL 7 energy.gov/ne
Our Team: Universities and International Collaborations Universities International Collaborations
- MIT Integrated Research
- OECD/Nuclear Energy Agency Project (2016-2018) - Expert Group on Accident Tolerant
- Data Gaps and Failure Modes Fuel
- Working Group on Fuel Safety
- Critical Heat Flux (2017)
- Framework for Irradiation
- Four projects Experiments (FIDES)
- Silicon Carbide Cladding
- International Atomic Energy (2018) Agency
- Six projects
- Coordinated Research Project on
- Coated Cladding: Advanced Accident Tolerant Fuels for Light NDE, Radiation effects in Water Reactors TREAT (2019)
- Two projects 8 energy.gov/ne
Timeline for the Near Term Coated Clad Concept 2018 - 2026 9 energy.gov/ne
Final Observations
- We have a great team with impressive participants:
Industry, National Laboratories, Utility Representatives EPRI and the NEI
- All parties recognize the important, independent regulatory role of the NRC
- Significant progress has been made and the program is well on the road to meeting the spirit of the Congressional 2012 request
- However, we have significant future challenges:
- Maintain the momentum with budget uncertainties
- Effecting integration of High Burnup & Enrichment
- Defining a post 2025 commercialization related conclusion 10 energy.gov/ne
11 energy.gov/ne