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3-D reconstruction and microstructural characterization of neutron-irradiated U-10Zr fuel using FIB-SEM serial sectioning

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Abstract

Focused ion beam-scanning electron microscopy serial sectioning was applied to characterize the three-dimensional (3-D) porosity and phase regions of a neutron-irradiated U-10 wt% Zr fuel. The specimen was removed from an intermediate radial region of a fuel pin irradiated to 5.7 at.% burn-up. Backscattered electron imaging and energy-dispersive spectroscopy were performed on each serial section, allowing for the characterization of microstructural morphology and composition. Porosity size followed a lognormal distribution, ranging from 1.46 × 10–4 to 25.58 μm3 with a total porosity volume fraction of 13.02%. Distinctive microstructural regions were identified by composition and porosity: (1) a Zr-rich region with an average composition of 28.4 wt% Zr and a local porosity fraction of 6.88%, and (2) a U-rich region with an average composition of 97.0 wt% U and a local porosity fraction of 14.11%; subdivided into U-rich—high porosity (16.68%) and U-rich—low porosity (8.04%) regions. The detailed 3-D compositional and porosity regions can improve nuclear fuel performance codes.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the US Department of Energy, Office of Nuclear Energy under DOE Idaho Operations Office Contract DE-AC07-051D14517 as part of a Nuclear Science User Facilities experiment (18-1590). Nicole Rodríguez Pérez acknowledges the U.S. Department of State and the Dominican Republic Education Ministry for providing academic funding as part of the Fulbright – MESCyT program, Grant number: GNT-20212273.

Funding

The funding was provided by Fulbright Dominican Republic (Grant No: GNT-20212273).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Materials Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, 47907, USA

    Nicole Rodríguez Pérez, Jonova Thomas & Maria A. Okuniewski

  2. Applied Materials Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, IL, 60439, USA

    Jonova Thomas

  3. Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho Falls, ID, 83415, USA

    Daniel Murray

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  1. Nicole Rodríguez Pérez
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Correspondence to Maria A. Okuniewski.

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Rodríguez Pérez, N., Thomas, J., Murray, D. et al. 3-D reconstruction and microstructural characterization of neutron-irradiated U-10Zr fuel using FIB-SEM serial sectioning. MRS Advances 8, 14–20 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1557/s43580-022-00464-3

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