b'Preliminary Postirradiation Examination ona U-Pu-Zr-Ga Pin Tested in EBR-IIPrincipal Investigator: Luca Capriotti, INLTeam Members/ Collaborators: Jason Harp, INLCharacterization of the behavior in pile of the EBR-II U-Pu-Zr-Ga metallic fuel pin experiment is of paramount importance to assess the feasibility of the usage of weapons-grade Pu as fast reactor metallic fuel without removing Ga.Acadmium-shrouded testing in the ATR long-term objective of the Department of Energysas prototypical of a true fast reactor. (DOEs) Advanced FuelsThis accomplishment focuses on the Campaign (AFC) is to develop andPIE performed on a selected EBR-II fuel demonstrate the technologies neededpin from a unique experiment X521. to transmute long-lived transuranicThis experiment contained U-19.8Pu-actinide isotopes contained in spent10Zr-0.2Ga metallic fuel pins to assess nuclear fuel into shorter-lived fissionthe feasibility of the usage of weapons-products, which is important tograde Pu as fast reactor metallic fuel minimize high level waste. As partwithout removing Ga.of this development, candidate fuelProject Description: compositions and forms are irradiatedThe X521 experiment was meant to in a cadmium-shrouded positions,characterize the behavior in pile of to simulate a fast spectrum reactor, atGa addition to a well characterized the Idaho National Laboratory (INLs)metallic fuel system and included Advanced Test Reactor (ATR), and arefive experimental fuel pins of alloy subsequently examined at the HotU-19.8Pu-10Zr-0.2Ga. They were Fuel Examination Facility (HFEF).irradiated in EBR-II in mid-1994 Complementary postirradiationand by the time EBR-II was shut examination (PIE) is performed ondown (in the fall of 1994), the fuel several metallic fuel pins irradiatedelements all achieved a peak burnup in the experimental breeder reactorsof 1.5 at%. However, due to funding (EBR-II) sodium fast reactor (SFR).limitations, no postirradiation work This is performed to validate thehas been conducted on these fuel elements so far.216 2019|AFC ACCOMPLISHMENTS'