EXPERIMENTS ON THE RELEASE OF FISSION PRODUCTS FROM MOLTEN REACTOR FUELS

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Abstract

Experiments on the release of fission products in the controlled melting of irradiated fuel of the APPR, STR, and MTR types under conditions simulating the loss-ofcoolant accident were performed. The results indicate that a moderate amount of heating in air or steam sufficient only to melt a specimen results in the partial volatilization of the rare Bases, the halogens, and the alkali metals. In the presence of air or steam, little of the strontium and other fission products is released. In this type of experiment the only particulate activity observed was composed entirely of cesium. At the level of trace concentration of fission products, APPR plate melted at 1525 deg C and released 50% of the rare gases, 33% of the iodine, 9% of thc cesium, and traces of strontium. After 25% burnup the cesium value rose markedly to 41%, while the iodine value apparently declined to 12%. Aluminum alloy at 700 deg C released only 2% of the iodine and lO% of the rare gases. Zirconium alloy, after 15% burnup, melted at 1850 deg C in air and released all of the rare gases, 26% of thc iodine, 10% of the cesium, snd less than 1% of the strontium.more » When melted in steam, approximately 2% of the strontium and 0.5% of the barium were also released from zirconium alloy. Exploratory expriments were performed with Geneva-type aluminum-dispersion fuel, UO/sub 2/, and GE-HTRE fuel. (auth) « less

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