Fabrication and loading of fuel rods for the Light Water Breeder Reactor (LWBR Development Program)

The fabrication and inspection operations used for the manufacture of approximately 24,000 fuel rods for the Light Water Breeder Reactor are described in detail. This report also describes the development work to establish the fabrication procedures and investigations undertaken to solve problems encountered during manufacturing. The approximately 10 foot long LWBR fuel rods were made in four outside diameters ranging from 0.306 inch (seed) to 0.832 inch (reflector). Each rod was fabricated by sealing cylindrical oxide fuel pellets (ThO2-U233O2), into Zircaloy seamless tubes by welding Zircaloy enclosures at the ends. The special inspections performed to assure a high quality product meeting all design requirements are described. These inspections included weld radiography and ultrasonic inspection, in-motion radiography to evaluate internal dimensions and pellet integrity, helium leak testing, corrosion testing, and detection of surface contamination. The facilities designed and built for this fabrication effort are described and the resultant manufacturing yields are presented. 13 refs., 42 figs., 20 tabs