Advanced mixed oxide fuel assemblies with higher plutonium contents for pressurized water reactors

Optimizing fuel cycle costs by increasing the final burnup leads to reduced generation of plutonium. Under properly defined boundary conditions thermal recycling in mixed oxide (MOX) fuel assemblies (FAs) reduces further the amount of plutonium which has to be disposed of in final storage. Increasing the final burnup requires higher initial enrichments of uranium fuel to be matched by an advanced design of MOX FAs with higher plutonium contents. The neutronic design of these MOX FAs has to consider the licensing status of nuclear power plants concerning the use of MOX fuel. The Siemens Nuclear Fuel Cycle Division, with more than 20 years' experience in the production of MOX fuel, has designed several advanced MOX FAs of different types (14 × 14 to 16 × 16) with fissile plutonium contents up to 4.60 w/o.