Efeitos de aditivos na sinterização do combustivel nuclear UO2.Gd2O3 / Effects of additives on the sintering of UO2.Gd2O3

AUTOR(ES)
DATA DE PUBLICAÇÃO

2009

RESUMO

The addition of 0.5wt% TiO2, Nb2O5, SiO2, Fe2O3 and Al(OH)3 in the UO2·7%Gd2O3 nuclear fuel and the effect on its sintering kinetics under a 99.999% H2 atmosphere were investigated by stepwise isothermal dilatometry. This fuel, used as burnable poison in nuclear power plants, presents a diffusion barrier around 1573 K that impairs densification. The aid of the sintering additives TiO2, Al(OH)3, Nb2O5 and Fe2O3 turned out to be effective to obtain the required final density, unlike the effect observed for the SiO2-doped composition. The activation energy for the intermediate sintering stage was calculated by stepwise isothermal dilatometry method and a positive correlation with the sintered body density was found. The method was valid for part of the intermediate sintering stage, in the range from 1200 K to 1700 K for the doped compositions and with no additive, except for the SiO2-doped one, whose validity range was between 1500 K and 1900 K. The energy-density correlation was not valid for the SiO2-doped composition, whose effect was to reduce the final density. This anomalous behavior may be attributed to the intense loss of Si mass, probably due to lower oxides volatilization, during the initial sintering stage at temperatures lower than 1173 K. Similar loss, but no so intense, was observed for the Al(OH)3-doped composition in the temperature interval from 1173 K to 1573 K. The Si concentration decrease to residual values of dozens of parts per million may explain its anomalous behavior. The positive correlation between activation energy and sintered body density may be explained by the inhibitor role played by the TiO2, Nb2O5, Fe2O3 and Al(OH)3 additives on the diffusion mechanisms that enhance the coarsening regime. As a consequence, the densification mechanisms are favored in the competition for the surface free energy. The coarsening-densification transition temperature model, originally suggested for the UO2 system, turned out to be valid for the UO2·7%Gd2O3 system. The reaction order calculation, also performed by the stepwise isothermal dilatometry method, showed that the coarsening diffusion mechanisms prevails at low temperatures, up to 1650 K for the SiO2-doped composition, up to 1550 K for the compositions doped with Nb2O5, Fe2O3, Al(OH)3 and no additive, and for the TiO2-doped one, up to 1450 K. From these temperatures on, the densification enhancing mechanisms become steadily more important and, in the end of method validity range, they become predominant. The microstructural analysis performed by X-ray diffraction of the TiO2, Nb2O5, SiO2 and Al(OH)3 doped compositions, sintered at 2023 K por 4 h, revealed the presence of niobium oxide, probably NbO or NbO2. It was identified Ti segregation at grain boundaries by energy-dispersive spectroscopy. The Mössbauer spectroscopy showed that Nb does not directly affect the Gd+3 diffusion and there is no free Gd2O3 after the sintering cycle is concluded at 2023 K for 4 h. O cálculo das ordens de reação, também pelo método stepwise isothermal dilatometry, mostrou que os mecanismos de difusão promotores do engrossamento predominam em baixas temperaturas, até 1.650 K para a composição dopada com SiO2, até 1.550 K para as composições dopadas com Nb2O5, , Fe2O3 e Al(OH)3 e sem aditivo, e até 1.450 K para aquela dopada com TiO2. A partir destas temperaturas de transição, os mecanismos de adensamento crescem de importância e, no final do intervalo de validade do método, passam a predominar. A análise microestrutural por difração de raios X das composições dopadas com TiO2, Nb2O5, SiO2 e Al(OH)3 indicou a presença de óxido de nióbio, provavelmente NbO ou NbO2, em corpos sinterizados a 2.023 K por 4 h. Foi identificado o acúmulo preferencial de Ti nos contornos de grãos do corpo sinterizado por espectroscopia por dispersão de energia. A análise de espectroscopia Mössbauer mostrou que o Nb não influencia diretamente a difusão de Gd+3 e não há Gd2O3 livre após a conclusão do processo de sinterização a 2.023 K por 4 h

ASSUNTO(S)

combustiveis nucleares sintering uranium terras raras gadolinia burnable poison nuclear fuel gadolineo urânio sinterização

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