Simulation with PLACA/DPLACA of monolithic and dispersed fuel plates

SOBA; DENIS

Cape Town

Congreso; IM-RERTR2006; 2006

IAEA

The codes PLACA/DPLACA designed to describe the irradiation behavior of plate-type fuels under normal operation conditions are presented. The two versions correspond to monolithic and disperse fuels, respectively. They contain about thirty interconnected and mutually dependent models.   The case of U-Mo particles dispersed in Al deserves a particular treatment due to the growth of an interaction layer that can provoke uncontrolled swelling. The model assumes that the kinetics of both interfaces is determined by diffusion of U and Al through the layer. The associated Stefan problems are numerically solved.   Both codes were applied to simulate several irradiation histories. Comparison of the calculation results with the experimental data evidence the correct performance of the models involved and a good coupling of the ensemble. The codes make possible a detailed simulation of the evolution of the more relevant physical parameters of a plate-type fuel element during its permanence within a reactor.