Field Report: Discover pragmatic examples of customer benefits
Outage Optimization - brochure
Covering the complete cycle - brochure
"Voyage au cœur de l'énergie" educational booklet [FR]
Fuel, the heart of nuclear fission
AREVA, European leader in nuclear fuel
"The keys to nuclear energy" ad-information
The nuclear power cycle - brochure
"Nuclear: energy for today and tomorrow" ad-information
"The keys to nuclear energy (junior)" ad-information
Fuel engineering, inspections and repairs
Nuclear fuel is used under closely controlled conditions. Its design and production must be beyond reproach and draw on high-level technical and scientific expertise. AREVA’s fuel supply offer is backed by a strong guarantee and includes a full range of maintenance and assistance services that cover the fuel’s operation cycle in the reactor.
Design
Drawing on extensive design and production experience, Fuel business unit teams produce local engineering reports in support of operating license applications for boiling or pressurized water reactors at power stations.
These reports were produced once more than 1,700 fuel reloads for pressurized water reactors (PWRs) and more than 400 for boiling water reactors (BWRs) had been supplied.
Engineering expertise covers:
- fuel loading and core design,
- reactor core analysis, operational monitoring and thermohydraulic analysis,
- mechanical analysis of fuel rods and assemblies,
- fuel management analysis
- safety analysis,
- start-up assistance (reactivity measurements),
- fuel engineering to increase power,
- sophisticated core control software,
- assistance with power plant operations, etc.
Advanced computer codes
Fuel assembly design is based on neutronic, thermohydraulic and mechanical computer codes and databases developed from lessons learned over many years.
The Fuel business unit has developed advanced codes that enable:
- coupled analysis in thermohydraulics and neutronics,
- coupled analysis in neutronics and core design,
- analyses of core stability, etc.
Fuel inspection and repairs
AREVA has nearly 35 years of experience in fuel monitoring, inspection and repairs. Local teams conduct fuel inspections and repairs on site and support power plant operators. Their sophisticated tools enable them to work with a wide range of power plant configurations and fuel models.
The Fuel business unit covers all stages of fuel’s use in a reactor:
- Fuel inspection during scheduled outages, or even underwater repair of damaged fuel rods or assemblies at the utility’s reactor site
- Fuel monitoring in light water reactors (PWRs and BWRs)
- Mechanical services and repairs such as reconstituting fuel, changing skeletons, sealing leaky fuel rods, etc.
- Assistance developing specialized tools for loading fuel assemblies, as well as aid and training in loading fuel assemblies
Example: restoring irradiated fuel assemblies
The STAR equipment, which can be easily moved from site to site, enables undamaged rods from a damaged assembly to be transferred to a new structure so that they can continue their irradiation in the reactor. It is also used to replace unsealed rods and to extract broken sections inside the assembly.
