Results of tests to demonstrate a six-inch diameter coater for production of TRISO-coated particles for advanced gas reactor experiments

The Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP)/Advanced Gas Reactor (AGR) Fuel Development and Qualification Program includes a series of irradiation experiments in Idaho National Laboratory's (INL's) Advanced Test Reactor. TRISO-coated particles for the first AGR experiment, AGR-1, were produced at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in a two-inch diameter coater. A requirement of the NGNP/AGR Program is to produce coated particles for later experiments in coaters more representative of industrial scale. Toward this end, tests have been performed by Babcock and Wilcox (B and W) in a six-inch diameter coater. These tests are expected to lead to successful fabrication of particles for the second AGR experiment, AGR-2.