This report presents an analysis of the projected economies and processing capacity requirements for a power reactor fuel reprocessing industry based on the recovery of fertile and fissionable materials from presently proposed power reactors within tbe confines of the continental United 8tates for the next five to ten years. An analysis of the present general state of development of a technology required for such an Industry is given. A summary of results of power reactor reprocessing chemical and engineering development at Oak Ridge National Laboratory from July 1955 through December 1956 is given. (auth)

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There is a definite need to determine the time required for the water in a process tube to boil out after loss of inlet flow. This information is required to evaluate the reactivity and power transients following such an occurrence. Such information will also partially determine the incentive for improvements in safety circuits and equipment, accelerated safety rods in particular. A secondary objective is to learn more about the mechanism of the boil-out. Boil-out times have been theoretically predicted in the past with very little experimental data to back them up. A scanning capacitance method is presented for measurement of the water distribution within a process tube under transient boiling conditions. Preliminary results of exploratory runs are included. The runs simulate inlet pigtail failures on process tubes operating at 725 and 1,000 KW. Curves of water distribution over the tube with time and total tube water content are included. Recommendations are made that the tests be continued to provide valid data for assessing the reactor hazards involved in cases of cooling water supply failure.

A study was made of the cladding of solid and powdered delta-phase zirconium hydride in both rod and flat shapes with stainless steel. The program included investigations of metallurgical bonding, both with and wlthout the use of metallic barrier materials. Types 304 and 347 stalnless steel were used for claddlng material. The intermediate barrier-layer materials used were niobium, molybdenum, a combination of copper and molybdenum, and a combination of copper and niobium. The pressure-bonding techniques, involving the use of gas pressure at elevated temperatures, was employed in this study. Variable tlmes and temperatures with a constant pressure of 10,000 psi were utilized to produce bondlng. The best results were achieved r-n cladding delta-phase zirconium hydride directly with Types 304 or 347 stainless steel. Geod bonds were obtained by pressure bonding at 16OO deg F for 3 or 4 hr subsequent to pressure bonding at 19OO deg F for 1 to 2 hr at a pressure of 10,000 psi. Partial bonding was achieved between niobium and zirconium hydride and molybdenum and zirconium hydride. (auth)

This report addresses the constitution of zirconium-uranium alloys containing oxygen or nitrogen.

The gas lift pump has not been considered here as a prinme mover for circulating coolant through a primary circuit, in view of the complexity which would arise in designing such a pump to overcome the head losses associated with the secondary large volumetric flow rates. The purpose of this investigation was merely to make a preliminary study of the general character of a heavy liquid metal gas-lift, to compare its operation with that of water, and to obtain some idea of the relationship of efficiency to flow rate. (A.C.)

This report describes the operation of the fuels preparation department for the month of May, 1957. Manufacturing, employee relations, process development, plant improvements, and financial operations are described.

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Various metallographic techniques were employed to determine the best method for the preparation of Al-clad, Ni-plated U fuel elements for bond studies. The quality of the final results and the speed of the preparation were the most important factors to be considered. The procedure presented was found to yield the most advantageous results in the minimum amount of time. (W.L.H.)

Topics discussed include procedures for the determination of Po in urine, feces, and blood; the determination of Be in biological materials; application of statistical methods to bio-assay; techniques for low-level alpha counting and pulse-height analysis; the toxicology of plutonium; the metabolism and toxic effects of fission products; methods for the radiometric determination of I/sup 131/ and Sr/sup 90/ in urine; procedures for the radiochemical analysis of Sr and Ba in human urine; and the design and performance of a wholebody gamma counter. (See also NLCO-595.) (C.H.)

Since the installation of Ball 3X equipment on the older reactors, several inadvertent ball drops have been experienced, many of which have required considerable recovery time. Furthermore, it is very probable that these recovery times be significantly increased subsequent to the proposed installation of air accelerated vertical safety rods. Because of this, interest has been expressed by reactor operations personnel toward provision of a ball recovery system which would substantially reduce these outages.

Six types of instruments are being considered for the metering of flow and/or density in high temperature (300 deg C) and pressure (2000 psi) slurry flow systems. Three of these meters yield readings that depend only on the flow rate or the density, one (the Double Rotameter) yields two readings from which both the flow and the density may be determined while another (the venturi) yields a reading that depends on both the flow rate and the density and thus may be either a density-meter or a flowmeter depending on which variable is the unknown. The remaining instrument (the ultrasonic meter) may yield a signal dependent solely on the flowrate or the density depending on the physical setup. This memo briefly describes these instruments, listing their particular advantages, the difficulties that may arise in their use and the state of development of each. (auth)

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