Strategy of advanced PWR Fuel development Korea

In Korea, sixteen PWRs and four PHWRs are in operation, and eight more PWRs are to be built by the year 2017. Sixteen operating PWRs comprise of eight Westinghouse type plants and eight optimized power reactors. Korea nuclear fuel company is designing, manufacturing and supplying nuclear fuel for all operating PWRs and PHWRs in Korea since 1989. The Korean nuclear fuel technologies have been developed by a step by step strategic approach. As the first step, the nuclear fuels were imported since Korea did not have any fuel fabrication technology at that time. KNFC was established in 1982 and localized successfully the nuclear fuel technologies, based on technologies Transferred from foreign fuel vendors. To improve the technologies fuel technologies, it established 'Mid- and Long term Nuclear Fuel Development Programs' in 1999. Based on these programs, PLUS7TM fuel has been developed jointly with a foreign fuel vendor and verified successfully through LTA in reactor irradiations, and finally its region application started from June of 2006 in Ulchin unit 4. PLUS7TM is an advanced fuel for the o pr 1000s and APR 1400s Likewise, both 16ACE7TM and 17ACE7TM fuels, which are advanced fuel for the 2-loop and the 3-loop Westinghouse type plants in Korea, have been developed jointly with the same foreign vendor. Their in reactor performance is now being verified through four LTAs loaded in Kori unit 2 and Kori unit 3, respectively. to be more competitive than ever and to lead the nuclear fuel technology in the world, KNFC started the X Gen fuel projectfrom 2005 in which the plus7tm and ace7tm development technologies and experiences are to be fully utilized. the X Gen fuel LTAs fabrication is scheduled to be completed late in 2010