FUEL ROD FOR NUCLEAR REACTOR

摘要

A fuel rod for nuclear reactor comprises a plurality of annular UO2 or MOX fuel pellets 1 threaded into a long bar 2 of burnable poison material such as Gd2O3 to form a pellet stack, which is inserted and sealed in a cladding tube 4. The Gd2O3 bar can be manufactured in a non-nuclear fuel manufacturing facility. The optimum design for the performance of the nuclear fuel is possible by changing the diameter and/or Gd2O3 concentration of the Gd2O3 bar. A fuel assembly (fig 4, not shown) comprises an outer ring of fuel rods as described above surrounding two inner rings of fuel rods not containing burnable poison.