Achievements and aims of post-irradiation examination

DISCUSSION

MR J0 T. DEMANT, UKAEA, Harwell

How were the subassembly sections in Paper 2 prepared and what, if anything, replaced the

sodium?

MR RATIER, Paper 2

A lead-bismuth-tin alloy is introduced into the subassembly, at the bottom end in order to avoid the formation of bubbles and other voids during filling. After its introduction, the alloy is solidified, starting at the bottom of the subassembly, and progressing towards the top end0

The subassembly is then sawn to produce sections which are then polished and examined.

DR K. Mo SWANSON, UKAEA, Dounreay

The cross-section of the Phenix subassembly shown in Fig. 1 of Paper 2 shows pin spacing, particularly near the wrapper, which varies considerably from a symmetrical array and will doubtless cause variations in cladding temperature. This must be a conservative design to cope with these variations.