Sketch Design of Fuel Sub-Assemblies for a SFR-150 MWe
Abstract
During the years 2018 and 2019 of the ASTRID program, a simulation program on SFRs has been prepared by the CEA and its industrial partners, EDF and Framatome, featuring sketch studies of a smaller-size SFR with extended experimental purposes. The core power has been reduced to 150 MWe to minimize investment costs. The design of the core and the fuel sub-assemblies (S/As) is evolutive over the reactor lifetime to demonstrate the feasibility of Pu multi-recycling and to qualify concepts and technologies expected for the future industrial SFRs. This paper presents sketch design studies of fuel S/As for a 150 MWe SFR, at the end of 2019. The hexagonal wrapper tube can host either a 169-SPX-type-pins bundle or a 127-ASTRID-type-pins bundle. The thermomechanical behaviour of the fuel bundle has been calculated with DOMAJEUR code. The lower gas plenum of the fuel pins has been reduced thanks to simulations with GERMINAL fuel performance code. The upper neutron shielding is made of steel and B4C rings housed in a leaktight compartment to stay compatible with the washing process, while limiting the secondary sodium activation and the irradiation level of diversified absorber rods electromagnet.