中国粉体技术2025，Vol.31Issue(5)：91-101,11.DOI:10.13732/j.issn.1008-5548.2025.05.007
高温气冷堆核燃料穿衣颗粒制备技术
Preparation technology of coated particles for nuclear fuel in high-temperature gas-cooled reactors
摘要
Abstract
Significance The fuel elements used in pebble-bed high-temperature gas-cooled reactors(PB-HTRs)are graphite spheres con-taining thousands of Tri-structural isotropic(TRISO)coated particles,which are fabricated through quasi-isostatic pressing.The coating layer of the coated particles serves as the first barrier to guarantee reactor safety.Before fuel element compression,a compression buffer layer,composed of the same material as the matrix,is wrapped around the surface of the coated particles.This layer directly and effectively mitigates damage to the coating layer during the element production process,a step known as the overcoating process. Progress China's high-temperature gas-cooled reactors(HTRs)have evolved over more than four decades,from the 10 MW high-temperature gas-cooled reactor-test module(HTR-10)to the 200 MW high-temperature gas-cooled reactor pebble-bed module(HTR-PM).Correspondingly,overcoating technologies,a crucial part of nuclear fuel production,have progressed through multiple stages:basic research-level,laboratory-scale,pilot-scale,commercial demonstration,and commercializa-tion.In terms of equipment structure,various types of overcoating equipment have been developed,including laboratory-scale onion-shaped and truncated-cone-shaped types,a meshed drum-type for commercial demonstration,and non-porous-drum and planetary types for large-scale commercial applications.The single-batch capacity has increased significantly,from 1 kgU to tens of kilograms.Meanwhile,the automation level,safety,and environmental friendliness of the equipment have been progres-sively improved while ensuring high product yield and quality.Advanced research methods,such as online analysis of particle shape and size,and numerical simulation,are used in equipment design,development,and process optimization,effectively accelerating progress and enhancing the effectiveness of research and development.So far,China's nuclear fuel overcoating technology has surpassed its international counterparts in productivity,product quality,and equipment automation and advance-ment through decades of dedicated efforts by several generations of R&D personnel. Conclusions and Prospects The evolution and advancement of nuclear fuel preparation technology,along with the scientific challenges in engineering,will garner increasing attention and attract professionals from diverse research domains into this field.Disciplines and research fields,including materials science,particle kinetic theory,fluid mechanics,and numerical simula-tion,will converge and give rise to new interdisciplinary directions in the study of the overcoating process.Theoretical achieve-ments will also lead to novel engineering concepts,promoting innovation and upgrading of overcoating equipment.With the widespread adoption of computer technology,advancements in image technology,enhanced precision and capabilities of detec-tion instruments,and ongoing process refinement and optimization,process control technology will be extensively applied to the overcoating process.This will significantly enhance the automation level of overcoating equipment.Artificial intelligence(AI)is also set to be deeply integrated into the industrial production of overcoating particles.By combining human expertise and the computer's analytical capabilities,AI will facilitate decision-making and task execution through big data analysis.The immedi-ate result of incorporating AI lies in the optimization of process parameters,thereby achieving optimal product quality and stabil-ity.With intensified theoretical research,improved automation,and the integration of artificial intelligence,overcoating tech-nology will undergo multidimensional technological transformations and evolve towards a more efficient,automated,and intelli-gent direction.TRISO-coated particles have played a pivotal role in ensuring the inherent safety of HTRs,making their structure highly favored for various types of nuclear reactors.With the rapid development of HTRs and increasing safety demands for reac-tors,the demand for accident-tolerant nuclear fuel incorporating TRISO particles will surge substantially.Consequently,over-coating technology is poised to have broader application prospects.关键词
高温气冷堆/球形核燃料元件/穿衣技术/穿衣颗粒Key words
high-temperature gas-cooled reactor/spherical nuclear fuel element/overcoating technology/overcoating particle分类
核科学引用本文复制引用
高明,卢振明,芦安源,于德水,赵永前,高天,刘兵..高温气冷堆核燃料穿衣颗粒制备技术[J].中国粉体技术,2025,31(5):91-101,11.基金项目
国家自然科学基金项目,编号:22403072 （）
国家科技重大专项项目,编号:ZX06901. （）
