Determination of elastic properties of polycrystalline U3Si2 using resonant ultrasound spectroscopy

The elastic properties of U3Si2 at room temperature have been measured via resonant ultrasound spectroscopy. Results show that the average value of Young's and the bulk modulus for U3Si2 are 130.4 ± 0.5 and 68.3 ± 0.5 GPa, respectively. Further, a numerical model to assess thermal stress in an operating fuel is evaluated. The thermal stress evolved in U3Si2 is compared to UO2 to facilitate an estimation of the probability of crack formation in U3Si2 under representative light water reactor operating conditions.