Radiation Effects Problems in Nuclear Fuel Rods

This paper will review some of the radiation effects problems that have been encountered in nuclear fuel rods. Examples are drawn from both the commercial Light Water Reactors (LWR) and the new, developing Liquid Metal Fast Breeder Reactors (LMFBR). The performance of a particular fuel rod is influenced by (1) the interaction between the ceramic fuel pellet column and the metal cladding tube, and (2) the interactions of the fuel cladding, separately, with the reactor core environment. The latter includes the effect of neutron flux, temperature, stress and corrosive chemicals. Despite this complex and hostile environment, many of the material interactions are known. Sufficient new detail will enable the fuel rod and the core power operation to be designed so that a very low incidence of fuel rod failures can be maintained.