Influence of fabrication route on Cr-doped UO2 oxidation (IONMAT project. Subtask 2.3)

Abstract

Cr-doped UO2 is one of the shortest-term Accident-Tolerant Fuel (ATF) concepts. Among other improvements, its design aims to provide enhanced safety margins in case of abnormal operation. But also, to provide delayed corrosion mechanisms compared to standard UO2, what becomes especially relevant for different spent fuel storage/disposal scenarios envisaged in the back-end of the nuclear fuel cycle. Here, a set of Cr-doped UO2 pellets obtained by two different methods (dry route and wet co-precipitation) are oxidized in air, and the results compared as a function of the fabrication route. The results show that the production method plays a more important role than the concentration of dopant itself.