In-situ high-resolution measurement of RHF nuclear fuel plates' spacing

International audienceMost of the High Performance Research Reactors (HPRR) are made of plates undergoing a limited swelling during irradiation. Measuring the fuel thickness or the inter-plate distance is then a promissing way to obtain information on the fuel element irradiation history. The experimental constraints are however quite heavy due to the aimed resolution and the element geometry. In order to perform such measurements, a high resolution ultrasonic device was designed. It was thinned down to 1 mm in order to be inserted into the reactor water-channel. The system is then excited with a 120 MHz central frequency burst and the distance measurement is carried out through the ultrasonic waves' time of flight estimation. A series of experiments was performed on a full size irradiated fuel element of the "Institut Laue-Langevin" reactor proving the feasibility of real-time in-situ measurements

Développement d'un dispositif ultrasonore hautes fréquences pour la caractérisation post-irradiation de l'élément combustible du RHF

The future HPRR LEU fuel plates will have to withstand aggressive irradiations leading to a swelling phenomenon. This latter induces structure modifications and impacts the initial inter-plate distance. This distance is investigated, under the access and microscopic resolution constraints, within the PERSEUS Project aiming the development of a non-destructive ultrasonic device. With a thickness of 1 mm to be inserted into the 1.8 mm water channel width of the High flux Reactor (RHF), the device relies upon two ultrasonic transducers connected to an electronic system. It allows time of flight and ultrasonic velocity estimations. The feasibility being already proved, optimizations on components of the measurement chain and signal processing have led to a new device. A developed motorized bench has allowed reproducibility measurements with a 500 nm resolution. Then, a reproducibility devices' radiation resistance experiment, carried out in the Arc-nucleart Institute, demonstrated their parameters stability under 3500 kGray. Experiments were also realized on the RHF fuel element where vertical position, distance and temperature were evaluated, with a 1 µm precision on channel gap thickness. Future works will explore waves ability to be focused in the depth of the plates.Les prochaines plaques combustibles faiblement enrichies des réacteurs HPRR devront résister à de hautes radiations et dévoileront probablement un gonflement. Ce dernier modifie la structure et influence la distance inter-plaque nominale. La mesure de cette distance à l'ordre micrométrique constitue l'objectif du projet PERSEUS via le développement d'un dispositif ultrasonore non-destructif. Réduit à 1 mm pour s'insérer dans l'interstice inter-plaque de 1.8 mm du Réacteur à Haut Flux (RHF), le dispositif comprend deux transducteurs ultrasonores reliés à un système électronique. Il permet les mesures de temps de vol et de vitesse ultrasonore. La faisabilité de mesure précédemment prouvée, des optimisations de la chaîne de mesure et du traitement du signal ont été intégrées, induisant une nouvelle génération de dispositif. Un banc motorisé a été développé et a permis des mesures de reproductibilité précises à 500 nm. La reproductibilité de résistance aux radiations, expérimentée à l'Institut Arc-Nucléart, a démontré la stabilité des dispositifs sous 3500 kGray. De plus, une expérience de mesure de distance inter-plaque sur l'élément combustible du RHF a permis les mesures de position verticale, de distance inter-plaque et de température avec 1 µm de précision d'épaisseur du canal d'eau. Une étude de faisabilité de focalisation des ondes est prévue pour analyser les plaques en profondeur

Radiation resistance of high frequency ultrasonic devices for distance measurement in the RHF

The fuel element plates of research reactors are subjected to swelling phenomena. These structure modifications impact an initial inter-plate distance of 1.8 mm. An ultrasonic device has been developed to investigate this parameter. With a 1 mm thickness, it relies on two transducers linked to an electronic system. The feasibility of the distance measurement has been proved in a previous study and the irradiation impact on the transducer components is here studied. To do so, a radiation resistance experiment was realized in the Arc-Nucleart Institute of Grenoble. It allowed the study of the influence of radiations on the device active and passive components’ characteristics

Tenue aux radiations de capteurs ultrasonores haute fréquence dédiés à la mesure de distance au sein de réacteurs à haut flux

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Tenue aux radiations de capteurs ultrasonores haute fréquence dédiés à la mesure de distance au sein de réacteurs à haut flux

International audienc

Radiation resistance of high frequency ultrasonic devices for distance measurement in the RHF

The fuel element plates of research reactors are subjected to swelling phenomena. These structure modifications impact an initial inter-plate distance of 1.8 mm. An ultrasonic device has been developed to investigate this parameter. With a 1 mm thickness, it relies on two transducers linked to an electronic system. The feasibility of the distance measurement has been proved in a previous study and the irradiation impact on the transducer components is here studied. To do so, a radiation resistance experiment was realized in the Arc-Nucleart Institute of Grenoble. It allowed the study of the influence of radiations on the device active and passive components’ characteristics

High frequency ultrasonic device development for non-destructive RHF irradiated fuel plate characterization

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Caractérisation ultrasonore de distances inter-plaques au sein d’un réacteur RHF

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Mesure de distance inter-plaques d’un réacteur nucléaire par méthode ultrasonore haute fréquence

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