Performance of Thin-Walled Stainless-Steel-Clad Fuel Rods

Ten thin-walled Type-304 stainless-steel-clad fuel rods were irradiated as part of the Saxton core to a maximum burnup of 8900 MWd/t at a maximum heat flux of 410 000 Btu/(h ft²) (129 W/cm²). The corresponding integrated fast flux exposure ( > 1 MeV) was 1.1 x 10²¹ n/cm². Postirradiation examinations revealed no evidence of failure or crack formation, although the thin-walled clad was subjected to plastic deformation. The experiment demonstrated satisfactory performance of stainless steel in a borated PWR environment.