10 CFR 830 Major Modification Determination for Advanced Test Reactor LEU Fuel Conversion

Boyd D. Christensen ; Michael A. Lehto ; Noel R. Duckwitz

关键词: ALUMINIUM;    ATRC REACTOR;    DESIGN;    EVALUATION;    IDAHO NATIONAL LABORATORY;    IRRADIATION;    MODIFICATIONS;    NUCLEAR FUELS;    PLATES;    PRODUCTION;    RADIOISOTOPES;    RESEARCH AND TEST REACTORS;    RESEARCH REACTORS;    SECURITY;    TEST REACTORS;    URANIUM ATR;    LEU Conversion;    low enriched uranium;    RERTR;   

DOI  :  10.2172/1044215
RP-ID  :  INL/EXT-12-25601
PID  :  OSTI ID: 1044215
Others  :  TRN: US1203454

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来源: SciTech Connect

【 摘 要 】

The Advanced Test Reactor (ATR), located in the ATR Complex of the Idaho National Laboratory (INL), was constructed in the 1960s for the purpose of irradiating reactor fuels and materials. Other irradiation services, such as radioisotope production, are also performed at ATR. The ATR is fueled with high-enriched uranium (HEU) matrix (UAlx) in an aluminum sandwich plate cladding. The National Nuclear Security Administration Global Threat Reduction Initiative (GTRI) strategic mission includes efforts to reduce and protect vulnerable nuclear and radiological material at civilian sites around the world. Converting research reactors from using HEU to low-enriched uranium (LEU) was originally started in 1978 as the Reduced Enrichment for Research and Test Reactors (RERTR) Program under the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science. Within this strategic mission, GTRI has three goals that provide a comprehensive approach to achieving this mission: The first goal, the driver for the modification that is the subject of this determination, is to convert research reactors from using HEU to LEU. Thus the mission of the ATR LEU Fuel Conversion Project is to convert the ATR and Advanced Test Reactor Critical facility (ATRC) (two of the six U.S. High-Performance Research Reactors [HPRR]) to LEU fuel by 2017. The major modification criteria evaluation of the project pre-conceptual design identified several issues that lead to the conclusion that the project is a major modification.