Advanced GFR Utilizing NITE-SiC/SiC Shield Fuel Pin

The R and D of NITE-SiC/SiC shield fuel pin for GFR has been performed by IVNET Program under MEXT, Japan. The objective of this program is to clearly indicate the near term feasibility of establishing attractive gas cooled fast reactor core component material system utilizing NITE SiC/SiC composite materials. Nano-powder Infiltration and Transient Eutectic Phase (NITE) process is the breakthrough of the SiC/SiC fabrication process firstly industrialized, which supplies SiC/SiC with excellent thermal and mechanical properties up to very high temperature, excellent hermeticity, low activation properties under fast reactor environment and micro structural and micro chemical stability under irradiation up to very high neutron dose level. This paper provides the current status of the NITE-SiC/SiC shield fuel pin with the emphasis on process R and D and material performance. (authors)