Fission Product Release from Molten U/Al Alloy Fuel: A Vapor Transpiration Model

This report describes the application of a vapor transportation model to fission product release data obtained for uranium/aluminum alloy fuel during early Oak Ridge fuel melt experiments. The Oak Ridge data validates the vapor transpiration model and suggests that iodine and cesium are released from the molten fuel surface in elemental form while tellurium and ruthenium are released as oxides. Cesium iodide is postulated to form in the vapor phase outside of the fuel matrix. Kinetic data indicates that cesium iodide can form from Cs atoms and diatomic iodine in the vapor phase. Temperatures lower than those capable of melting fuel are necessary in order to maintain a sufficient I2 concentration. At temperatures near the fuel melting point, cesium can react with iodine atoms to form CsI only on solid surfaces such as aerosols