Thermal Energy Transport in Oxide Nuclear Fuel
David H. Hurley, Anter El–Azab, Matthew S. Bryan, M. Cooper, Cody A. Dennett, Krzysztof Gofryk, Lingfeng He, Marat Khafizov, Gerard H. Lander, Michael E. Manley, J. Matthew Mann, Chris A. Marianetti, Karl Rickert, F. A. Selim, Michael Tonks, Janelle P. Wharry
Abstract
). In both materials, heat is carried by lattice waves or phonons. Crystalline defects caused by fission events effectively scatter phonons and lead to a degradation in fuel performance over time. Bolstered by new computational and experimental tools, researchers are now developing the foundational work necessary to accurately model and ultimately control thermal transport in advanced nuclear fuels. We begin by reviewing research aimed at understanding thermal transport in perfect single crystals. The absence of defects enables studies that focus on the fundamental aspects of phonon transport. Next, we review research that targets defect generation and evolution. Here the focus is on ion irradiation studies used as surrogates for damage caused by fission products. We end this review with a discussion of modeling and experimental efforts directed at predicting and validating mesoscale thermal transport in the presence of irradiation defects. While efforts in these research areas have been robust, challenging work remains in developing holistic tools to capture and predict thermal energy transport across widely varying environmental conditions.