Abstract:
A HIGH-TEMPERATURE DIMESIONALLY STABLE NUCLEAR REACTOR FUEL ELEMENT OF URANIUM MONONITRIDE IN A REFRACTORY METAL MATRIX HAVING EVENLY DISTRIBUTED POROSITY IS PREPARED BY COLD PRESSING A MIXTURE OF A POWDERED REFRACTORY METAL AND POWDERED U2N3, FORMING A BODY WHICH IS THEN DENSIFIED BY HEATING UNDER PRESSURE TO PREVENT COMPLETE DECOMPOSITION OF THE U2N3. THE DENSIFIED BODY IS THEN HEATED TO DECOMPOSE THE U2N3 TO UN, LEAVING EVENLY DISTRIBUTED POROSITY THROUGHOUT THE ELEMENT.