Results of Recent Microstructural Characterization of Irradiated U-Mo Dispersion Fuels with Al Alloy Matrices that Contain Si

RERTR U-Mo dispersion fuel plates are being developed for application in research reactors throughout the world. Of particular interest is the irradiation performance of U-Mo dispersion fuels with Si added to the Al matrix. Si is added to improve the performance of U-Mo dispersion fuels. Microstructural examinations have been performed on fuel plates with either Al-0.2Si or 4043 Al (~4.8% Si) alloy matrix in the as-fabricated and/or as-irradiated condition using optical metallography and/or scanning electron microscopy. Fuel plates with either matrix can have Si-rich layers around the U-7Mo particles after fabrication, and during irradiation these layers were observed to grow in thickness and to become Si-deficient in some areas of the fuel plates. For the fuel plates with 4043 Al, this was observed in fuel plate areas that were exposed to very aggressive irradiation conditions