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Mechanical Engineering

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University of South Carolina

Theses and Dissertations

2021

Boron nitride test-stand

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Separate Effects Tests For Studying Thermal Gradient Driven Cracking In Uo2 Pellets Undergoing Resistive Heating, Sobhan Patnaik Apr 2021

Separate Effects Tests For Studying Thermal Gradient Driven Cracking In Uo2 Pellets Undergoing Resistive Heating, Sobhan Patnaik

Theses and Dissertations

A variety of normal operation and accident scenarios can generate thermal stresses large enough to cause cracking in light-water reactor (LWR) fuel pellets. Cracking of fuel pellets can lead to reduced heat removal, larger centerline temperatures, and localized stress in cladding, all of which impact fuel performance. It is important to understand the temperature profile on the pellet before and after cracking to improve cracking models in fuel performance codes such as BISON. However, in reactor observation and measurement of cracking is very challenging owing to the harsh environment and design of fuel rods.

Recently, a state-of-the-art experimental pellet cracking …