Abstract
In Korea, R&D on a sodium-cooled fast reactor (SFR) was begun in 1997, as one of the national long-term nuclear R&D programs. As one fuel option for a prototype SFR, a metallic fuel, U-Zr alloy fuel, was selected and is currently being developed. For the fabrication of SFR metallic fuel rods, the end plug welding is a crucial process. The sealing of the end plug to the cladding tube should be hermetically perfect to prevent a leakage of fission gases and to maintain a good reactor performance. In this study, the welding technique, welding equipment, welding conditions, and parameters were developed for the end plug welding of SFR metallic fuel rods. A gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW) technique was adopted and the welding joint design was developed. In addition, the optimal welding conditions and parameters were established. Based on the establishment of the welding conditions, the GTAW technique was qualified for the end plug welding of SFR metallic fuel rods.
Highlights
The generation IV (Gen-IV) program was started by eleven countries in 2000 for the development of an innovative nuclear energy system along with its goals, safety, economics, resource utilization, waste management, proliferation resistance, and physical protection (PR and PP) [1]
The gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW) technique was chosen for the end plug welding, and the welding joint design, the welding conditions, and parameters were developed
To prove the end plug weld integrity, the qualification test of the end plug welding for sodiumcooled fast reactor (SFR) metallic fuel rods was carried out based on the developed welding technique, welding equipment, welding conditions, and parameters
Summary
The generation IV (Gen-IV) program was started by eleven countries in 2000 for the development of an innovative nuclear energy system along with its goals, safety, economics, resource utilization, waste management, proliferation resistance, and physical protection (PR and PP) [1]. Among the six selected systems within the Gen-IV program is a sodiumcooled fast reactor (SFR). For the fabrication of SFR metallic fuel rods, the end plug welding is a crucial process [4, 5]. The gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW) technique was chosen for the end plug welding, and the welding joint design, the welding conditions, and parameters were developed. The optimal welding conditions and parameters were established. To prove the end plug weld integrity, the qualification test of the end plug welding for SFR metallic fuel rods was carried out based on the developed welding technique, welding equipment, welding conditions, and parameters. The end plug welding process for SFR metallic fuel rod fabrication was successfully established
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