Trends of Research

  • Generation of experimental data and study of the mechanisms of changes in the fuel and structural materials properties under irradiation of different intensity;
  • Study of cladding materials corrosion resistance under different water chemistry, fuel-to-cladding mechanical interaction and fission gas release from fuel elements of nuclear power facilities;
  • Study of radioactive product release and migration from fuel and untight fuel elements of water-cooled power reactors;
  • Investigation of properties and justification of the performance of new materials, technologies and designs during reactor tests of nuclear engineering items under conditions simulating the real ones;
  • Development of advanced methods to accumulate and produce radiochemicals with the required specific activity for engineering and medical purposes.

  •  Areas of Activities

  • Testing of dummy fuel elements containing compact and vibropacked MOX fuel to justify life characteristics including comparative assessment of their performance;
  • Testing of prototype fuel elements containing uranium dioxide fuel in the metal matrix;
  • Additional irradiation up to a high burnup of refabricated and full-size fuel elements for water-cooled power reactors followed by materials tests;
  • Testing of tight and untight fuel elements with simulated cladding defects, as well as refabricated instrumented and full-size fuel elements with a different fuel burnup for water-cooled power reactors under steady-state and transient conditions (RAMP, power maneuvering), and design-basis RIA and LOCA;
  • Testing of dummy fuel elements with different fuel compositions and cladding materials for water-cooled power reactors;
  • Testing of structural materials to study the effect of irradiation on their mechanical properties;
  • Study of high-density uranium fuel compositions as well as fuel elements and FAs based on such compositions to reduce nuclear research reactor fuel enrichment under RERTR.

  •  Promising Trends of Research

  • Study of performance and behavior of structural and fuel materials for different nuclear facilities (power, propulsion, research, space, etc.) under the conditions simulating normal ones (steady-state and transient) and design-basis accidents;
  • Study of untight fuel elements of water-cooled power reactors including fission gas release from fuel under steady-state and transient conditions and design-basis accidents;
  • Development of test procedures and rigs as well as tests including instrumented ones for fuel and structural materials of new-generation nuclear power facilities;
  • Research in support of reducing fuel enrichment in nuclear research reactors under RERTR;
  • Development of procedures to provide, maintain and control water chemistry, as well as equipment decontamination for nuclear test and power reactors, and related experiments;
  • Enhancement in accumulating different purpose radionuclides.