Minor Actinide Bearing Fuels: Fabrication and Irradiation Experience in Europe.

Abstract: Minor actinides constitute a significant contribution to the long term radiotoxicity of spent fuel. Their separation from spent fuel, fabrication and irradiation in homogeneous or heterogeneous reactor recycling modes provides a means to dramatically reduce their impact. Several challenges must be overcome in the separation and fabrication steps. Advanced robust fabrication processes are required to minimise dust and to produce fuels specifically designed to optimise their destruction through neutron irradiation. At the Institute for Transuranium Elements fabrication routes based on sol gel and infiltration have been developed to meet these demands. Dedicated fuels and targets have been produced and their irradiation behaviour is being tested. Fuels based on MOX and UO2 are being tested with respect to Gen IV fast reactor initiatives. Furthermore, dedicated minor actinide transmutation fuels based on the inert matrix concept (e.g. (Zr,Y,Am)O2 and Mo based (Pu,Am)O2 composite fuels) have been produced for application in the double strata concept, whereby the minor actinides should be transmuted in an ADS. Achievements and current status of these programmesare presented and discussed in this paper. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]