It is shown that the initial state of uranium dioxide powder has no effect on the density, microstructure, and strength of pellets. Pore-forming agents and U3O8 used in fabrication lower the pellet strength because their particles are not spherical. To increase pellet strength, it is recommended that U3O8 be subjected to special processing to spheroidize the particles before mixing for uranium dioxide powder.
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Translated from Atomnaya Énergiya, Vol. 107, No. 2, pp. 69–71, August, 2009.
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Petrov, I.V., Basov, V.V. Investigation of the influence of the initial state of powder, pore-forming additions, and U3O8 on the microstructure and strength of fuel pellets. At Energy 107, 85–88 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10512-009-9200-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10512-009-9200-8