Numerical study on the effective thermophysical properties of U3Si2/Al dispersion fuel with interaction layer growth

IF 3.2 3区工程技术 Q1 NUCLEAR SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

Progress in Nuclear Energy Pub Date : 2025-08-16 DOI:10.1016/j.pnucene.2025.105988

Wenwen Zhang, Wenli Guo, Wentao Hao, Hao Luo, Ding She

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

U₃Si₂/Al dispersion fuel has been widely used in research reactors due to its high uranium density and excellent thermal conductivity. The thermophysical properties of the fuel meat, primarily effective thermal conductivity and specific heat capacity, directly affect the heat dissipation performance and in-core behavior of the fuel. In this study, a refined Representative Volume Element (RVE) model coupled with the Finite Element Method (FEM) is employed to systematically investigate the thermophysical properties of U₃Si₂/Al dispersion fuel with four different uranium densities. The model incorporates the effects of fuel particle distribution, Interaction Layer (IL) growth, and matrix porosity. The influence of temperature, fuel particle volume fraction, matrix porosity, and IL thickness on the effective thermal conductivity and specific heat capacity is explored. The accuracy of the proposed numerical method is validated by comparison with results from literature-based code and experimentally summarized data. The results indicate that increases in both fuel particle volume fraction and matrix porosity significantly alter the effective thermal conductivity and specific heat. Notably, the growth of the interaction layer reduces the thermal conductivity and modifies the distribution of specific heat capacity. This work provides a theoretical basis for predicting the thermophysical behavior of U₃Si₂/Al dispersion fuel and offers new insights into fuel design and performance optimization.

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相互作用层生长下U3Si2/Al弥散燃料有效热物理性质的数值研究

U3Si2/Al分散燃料因其高铀密度和优异的导热性而广泛应用于研究堆。燃料肉的热物理性质，主要是有效导热系数和比热容，直接影响燃料的散热性能和堆芯内行为。本文采用改进的代表体积元（RVE）模型与有限元法（FEM）相结合的方法，系统地研究了四种不同铀密度下U3Si2/Al弥散燃料的热物理性质。该模型考虑了燃料颗粒分布、相互作用层（IL）生长和基质孔隙度的影响。探讨了温度、燃料颗粒体积分数、基质孔隙率和IL厚度对有效导热系数和比热容的影响。通过与基于文献的代码计算结果和实验总结数据的比较，验证了所提数值方法的准确性。结果表明，燃料颗粒体积分数和基质孔隙率的增加显著改变了有效导热系数和比热。值得注意的是，相互作用层的生长降低了导热系数，改变了比热容的分布。该工作为预测U3Si2/Al分散燃料的热物理行为提供了理论基础，并为燃料设计和性能优化提供了新的见解。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Progress in Nuclear Energy 工程技术-核科学技术

CiteScore

5.30

自引率

14.80%

发文量

331

审稿时长

3.5 months

期刊介绍： Progress in Nuclear Energy is an international review journal covering all aspects of nuclear science and engineering. In keeping with the maturity of nuclear power, articles on safety, siting and environmental problems are encouraged, as are those associated with economics and fuel management. However, basic physics and engineering will remain an important aspect of the editorial policy. Articles published are either of a review nature or present new material in more depth. They are aimed at researchers and technically-oriented managers working in the nuclear energy field. Please note the following: 1) PNE seeks high quality research papers which are medium to long in length. Short research papers should be submitted to the journal Annals in Nuclear Energy. 2) PNE reserves the right to reject papers which are based solely on routine application of computer codes used to produce reactor designs or explain existing reactor phenomena. Such papers, although worthy, are best left as laboratory reports whereas Progress in Nuclear Energy seeks papers of originality, which are archival in nature, in the fields of mathematical and experimental nuclear technology, including fission, fusion (blanket physics, radiation damage), safety, materials aspects, economics, etc. 3) Review papers, which may occasionally be invited, are particularly sought by the journal in these fields.