Using the most accurate measurements of the liquidus temperature in the UO2–Gd2O3 system up to 30 mol.% of Gd2O3, thermodynamic models of the melt and cubic solution GdO1.5 in UO2 are constructed. The equilibrium phase diagram of the system UO2–GdO1.5 in the interval 1900–3200 K is calculated in the entire composition range and the metastable diagram is calculated assuming that no cubic solid solutions are formed. The upper and lower boundaries of the melting onset temperature (solidus) of uraniumgadolinium fuel are presented. The phase composition of the pellets made from such fuel and, ultimately, the technology determine the melting onset temperature uniquely.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Characteristics and Use of Urania-Gadolinia Fuel, IAEA-TECDOC-844, IAEA, Vienna (1995).
R. Beals, J. Handwerk, and B. Wrona, “Behavior of urania-rare-earth oxides at high temperatures,” J. Amer. Ceram. Soc., 52, No. 11, 578–581 (1969).
L. Grossman, D. Packard, and H. Hill, “(U, Gd)O2.00 phase equilibria at high temperatures,” Colloq. Int. CNRS, No. 205, 453–458 (1972).
T. Wada, K. Noro, and K. Tsukui, “Behavior of UO2–GdO3 fuel,” in: Proc. Int. Conf. BNES on Nuclear Fuel Performance, (1973), pp. 63.1–63.3.
A. Chotard, P. Melin, M. Bruet, and R. Francois, “Out of pile physical properties and in pile thermal conductivity of (U, Gd)O2” in: IWGFPT’26 (1986), p. 77–86.
S. Yamanouchi, T. Tachibana, K. Tsukui, and M. Oguma, “Melting temperature of irradiated UO2 and UO2–2wt%Gd2O3 fuel pellets up to burnup of about 30 GWd/tU,” J. Nucl. Sci. Techn., 25, No. 6, 538–533 (1988).
M. Matsuoka, “UO2–d3O3 fuel,” in: Proc. of Fall Meeting of the Atomic Energy Society of Japan (1990), pp. 679–683.
Y. Yamada, H. Matsuda, and M. Yoshimura, “Melting and measurements of solidification point of UO2–Gd2O solid solutions under solar furnace,” Koo Gakkaishi, 25, No. 2, 71–79 (1999).
K. Kang, J. Yang, and J. Kim, “The solidus and liquidus temperatures of UO2–Gd2O3 and UO2–Er2O3 fuels,” Thermochim. Acta, 455, 134–137 (2007).
M. Adamson, E. Aitken, and R. Caputi, “Experimental and thermodynamic evaluation of the melting behavior of irradiated oxide fuels,” J. Nucl. Mater., 130, 340–365 (1985).
R. Beals and J. Handwerk, “Sold solutions in system urania–rare-earth oxides: I, UO2–GdO1.5,” J. Amer. Ceram. Soc., 48, No. 5, 271–274 (1965).
S. Popov and V. Proselkov, “Thermodyamic assessment of solidus and liquidus of urania-gadolinia fuels,” in: Proc. of Top Fuel 2009, Paris, France, Sep. 6–10, 2009, Paper 2150.
S. G. Popov, V. A. Lysenko, and V. N. Proselkov, “Thermodynamic analysis of the stability of uranium-gadolinium fuel at high temperatures,” Preprint IAE-6630/4 (2010).
N. V. Lyalyushkin, R. F. Melkaya, Yu. F. Volkov, et al., “Synthesis and study of solid solutions in the UO2–Gd2O3 system,” Preprint NIIAR-10(837) (1992).
M. Durazzo, F. Oliveiara, E. Carvalho, and H. Riella, “Phase studies in the UO2–Gd2O3 system,” J. Nucl. Mater., 400, 183–188 (2010).
Y. Chang, “Phase diagram calculations in teaching, research, and industry,” Metall. Mater. Trans. B, 37, No. 1, 7–39 (2006).
A. Silva, J. Agren, and M. Clavaguera-Mora, “Application of computational thermodynamic – the extension from phase equilibrium to phase transformations and other properties,” Calphad., 31, No. 1, 53–74 (2007).
Y. Li, C. Wang, and X. Liu, “Thermodynamic assessments of binary phase diagrams in organic and polymeric systems,” ibid., 33, No. 2, 415–419 (2009).
M. Temkin, “Mixtures of fused salts as ionic solutions,” Zh. Fiz. Khim., 33, No. 2, 415–419 (2009).
G. Gueneau, M. Baichi, D. Labroche, et al., “Thermodynamic assessment of the uranium-oxygen system,” J. Nucl. Mater., 304, 161–171 (2002).
J. Coutures and M. Rand, “Melting temperatures of refractory oxides: Part II. Lanthanoid sesquioxides,” Pure Appl. Chem., 61, No. 8, 1461–1482 (1989).
M. Zinkevich, “Thermodynamics of rare-earth sesquioides,” Progress Mater. Sci., 52, 597–647 (2007).
I. Ansara, “Comparison of methods for thermodynamic calculation of phase diagrams,” Intern. Metals Rev., No. 1, 20–53 (1979).
A. Ravindran, G. Reklaitis, and G. Ragsdale, Engineering Optimization: Methods and Applications [Russian translation], Mir, Moscow (1986), Vol. 1.
M. Foex and J. Traverse, “Remarques sur les transformations cristallines presentees a haute temperature par les sesquioxydes de terres rares,” Rev. Int. Hautes Temper. Refract., 3, No. 4, 429–453 (1966).
M. Mizuno and T. Yamada, “Solidification point measurements of lanthanide oxides with a solar furnace,” Nagoya Kogyo Gijutsu Shikensho Hokoku, 34, No. 7, 222–28 (1985).
A. Shevthenko and L. Lopato, “TA method application to the highest refractory oxide systems investigation,” Thermochim. Acta, 93, 537–540 (1985).
G. T. Adylov and L. M. Sigalov, “High-temperature studies of RE sesquioxides by thermal analysis in air,” Dokl. Akad. Nauk Uzbek. SSR, No. 3, 33–36 (1988).
A. Grundy, B. Hallstedt, and L. Gauckler, “Thermodynamic assessment of the lanthanum-oxygen system,” J. Phase Equilib., 22, No. 2, 105–113 (2001).
L. Barkhatov, L. Zhmakin, D. Kagan, el al., “The electric conductivity and heats of high-temperature phase transition of gadolinia,” High Temp. – High Press., 13, No. 1, 39–42 (1981).
D. Balestrieri, A Study of the UO 2 /Gd 2 O 3 Composite Fuel, IAEA-TECDOC-1036, IAEA,Vienna (1998), pp. 63–72.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Translated from Atomnaya Énergiya, Vol. 110, No. 4, pp. 188–194, April, 2011.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Popov, S.G., Proselkov, V.N. & Lysenko, V.A. Thermodynamic analysis of uranium–gadolinium fuel stability at high temperatures. At Energy 110, 221–229 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10512-011-9415-3
Received:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10512-011-9415-3