Fracture of Graphite Fuel Bricks

Completed

Nuclear Fission and Fusion(Nuclear Fission, Nuclear supporting technologies)
Nuclear Fission and Fusion(Nuclear Fission, Other converter reactors)

Applied Research and Development

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY (Mechanical, Aeronautical and Manufacturing Engineering)

Not Cross-cutting

Professor P Mummery
Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering
University of Manchester

Standard

EPSRC

01 June 2013

30 November 2015

30 months

£413,476

Energy

North West

Energy : Energy

Professor P Mummery, Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering, University of Manchester

Dr A Jones, Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering, University of Manchester
Professor BJ Marsden, Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering, University of Manchester
Dr MJJ Schmidt, Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering, University of Manchester
Professor JR Yates, Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering, University of Manchester

The graphite core in nuclear Advanced Gas cooled Reactors (AGRs) provides channel for fuel cooling and shutdown/control rod insertion. Damage tolerance assessments need to determine that adequate margins remain for theintegrity of the fuel and the safety systems proper behaviour. For UK existing plants, graphite bricks' cracking is a keyquestion regarding lifetime management decisions. For the next generation plants, it has an influence on expected lifetimesand on investment plans.The objective of this proposal is to gain a good understanding and evaluation of fracture in graphite components bycomplementary numerical and experimental approaches. An advanced modelling tool allowing to simulate automaticallycrack propagation in graphite bricks will be developed and transferred to industry end-users. An innovative experimentalmethod will be elaborated to validate these models. Uncertainties on the whole core mechanical behaviour will be assessed

13/03/13