Microstructural characterization of U–7Mo/Al–Si alloy matrix dispersion fuel plates fabricated at 500 °C

The starting microstructure of a dispersion fuel plate will impact the overall performance of the plate during irradiation. To improve the understanding of the as-fabricated microstructures of U–Mo dispersion fuel plates, particularly the interaction layers that can form between the fuel particles and the matrix, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analyses have been performed on samples from depleted U–7Mo (U–7Mo) dispersion fuel plates with either Al–2 wt.% Si(Al–2Si) or AA4043 alloy matrix. It was observed that in the thick interaction layers, U(Al, Si)3 and U6Mo4Al43 were present, and in the thin interaction layers, (U, Mo) (Al, Si)3, U(Al, Si)4, U3Si3Al2, U3Si5, and possibly USi-type phases were observed. The U3Si3Al2 phase contained some Mo. Based on the results of this investigation, the time that a dispersion fuel plate is exposed to a relatively high temperature during fabrication will impact the nature of the interaction layers around the fuel particles. Uniformly thin, Si-rich layers will develop around the U–7Mo particles for shorter exposure times, and thicker, Si-depleted layers will develop for the longer exposure times.