Alkem Gmbh

Karl Ennerst

Wolfgang Stoll

Peter Funke

Rainer Lob

Reprocessing a nuclear reactor fuel rod which contains nuclear fuel in a cladding tube, by removing the cladding tube from the nuclear fuel. The cladding tube is uniformly heated in hermetically sealed condition together with the nuclear fuel contained thereon to permanently expand the diameter of the cladding tube without the formation of cracks in the cladding tube, increasing the distance between the nuclear fuel and the cladding tube. Subsequently the expanded cladding tube is opened at one end. The nuclear fuel is removed from the opened cladding tube and is processed further, separate from the cladding tube.

Method for reprocessing a nuclear reactor fuel rod

Production of UO.sub.2 nuclear fuel pellets containing PuO.sub.2 in set amounts, which pellets are soluble in nitric acid and suitable for reprocessing without the aid of a special additive. Uranium oxide powder is mixed with 15 to 50% by weight of the mixture of plutonium oxide powder; the mixture milled and pressed into pellets. The pellets are sintered, comminuted, pressed to form pellets and the pellets comminuted to free-flowing granules. The free-flowing granules are mixed with UO.sub.2 granules to obtain a desired UO.sub.2 /PuO.sub.2 ratio, and the mixture pressed into pellets and sintered to form UO.sub.2 nuclear fuel pellets containing PuO.sub.2 soluble in nitric acid.

Growing community of inventors

Kleinostheim, Germany

Karl Ennerst