Hot isostatic pressing of porous U-10Zr prepared by powder metallurgy techniques

Fuel-cladding mechanical interaction (FCMI) is an important and potentially life-limiting phenomenon for metal nuclear fuels. Such FCMI becomes important if fission gases are retained longer than predicted, if tearing is not completely interconnected to release the gas, or if a temperature transient occurs when the fuel is in firm contact with the cladding, especially at high burnup when the porosity becomes filled with fission product lanthanides. Since FCMI-induced stresses may be reduced by hot pressing of the fuel, isostatic hot-pressing experiments have been carried out on unirradiated, porous samples prepared through powder metallurgy methods to entrap gas.