This document consists of three photographs of ruptured fuel elements. The position, date charged, date failed, exposure, power, lot and failure type are given for tube 3655-KE, tube 4153-KE, and tube 3849-KE. (GHH)

The feasibility of adding four ``corner`` rods to the K Reactor`s 20-rod HCR system is being investigated. It is necessary to compare the costs and production gains of this method for gaining additional reactivity and heat distribution control with other supplementary control systems. This document presents the results of an investigation of the production gains that could be made by adding four rods to the KE Reactor HCR system.

This investigation is the second study of short period flow decay in the Hanford reactors. The first study was made on the D-Reactor. As in the analysis for D-Reactor quantitative analyses were made for ruptures that might result from sabotage. A visual inspection of the entire process water piping system was also made to check for any glaring deficiencies with respect to earthquake resistance. A brief discussion of the earthquake resistance of the system is also included in this report.

The basic investigation of transistor feedback amplifiers has proven mathematically simple and of great practical value. The behavior of single- stage commonemitier amplifiers is described and provides a building block with which cascaded feedback amplifiers can be analyzed and designed. From the results of this analysis the conditions for minimum drift for cascaded singlestages and cascaded loops have been derived. A transistorized linear amplifier, pulse-height discriminator, scaler, and high-voltage power supply packaged together is a single piece of portable counting gear is under development. The high-gain linear amplifier is the heart of the system and must have good reliability, wide bandwidth, small temperature-drift effects, etc. The amplifier developed has a rise time of 0.5 mu sec and current gain of 7,000, amd is designed to drive a currentpulse discriminator so that only a few volts swing at the output are needed. (auth)

Program F/sub 3/ provides an anslysts of a three group, one-dimensionni reactor in multi-region slab or cylindrical geometry. Input consists of a description of the geometry of the assembly, energy group constants defining the nuclear characteristics of each region, and control information specifying the type of calculation desired. The fission density and neutron flux, computed at each lattice point, are used to calculate the reactivity of the system. (auth)

The accuracy with which the breeding ratio of HRE-3 could be determined after a period of reactor operation was investigated. Inaccuracies in measurement of the core U/sup 233/ inventory and blanket U/sup 233/ and Pa/sup 233/ inventories appear to be the major sources of error. Appreciable errors could result from attempting to determine these inventories by sampling the reactor contents. For example, if generalized attack on stainless steel is at a rate of 1.0 mpy and if the associated film of corrosion products is 1% uranium, failure to account for this fuel in evaluation of the core inventory would cause an error of about 5% in the breeding ratio. (auth)

The reduction in HRE-3 breeding ratio resulting from neutron absorptions in the core-inlet line was examined for spherical and cylindrical cores; it was found to be less than 0.5% if the pipe does not extend more than 1/4 the way from the top to the bottom of the core. The power density at the end of the pipe would be 57 kw/l if it extended 5 in. into the sphere. (auth)

A detailed description is given of a Monte Carlo method and the accompanying IBM 704 program for the determination of the gamma energy loss distribution in the central cell of a proposed infinitely long heterogeneous reactor. (auth)

Adequate mixing (80 lb/min or higher) of the core and blanket high pressure systems can be accomplished either by interconnecting the chemical plant process lines or by connecting the sample access holes of the core and pressure vessels. The cross connection of the chemical plant process lines would probably be the easiest to install and control, but if the stagnant space in the blanket corrosion sample port requires purging it is recommended that a connection between the access holes be made. (auth)

An analysis of the temperature structure in the CCR-2 fuel elements and coolant stream at the position where the maximum fuel element surface temperature exists is presented. Results were obtained by numerical methods on the IBM 704 digital computer. The effect of variation in channel size is shown, and a method of data correlation is suggested. Preliminary conclusions are presented as to the effect of temperature structure on the design and testing of gas cooled reactor fuel element configurations. In view of the rate at which gas cooled reactor work is proceeding results of the calculations are being published in their current incomplete form. The study is continuing in an effort to refine the calculations, and experimental data will eventually be available with which to verify the analytical conclusions. (auth)

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Production methods for producting homogeneous uranium-10 wt.% molybdenum fuel-alloy pin with a uniform zirconium cladding have been studied. The effect of various impurities has been investigated and the nature of and methods for ellminating cracking in swaged fuel pins have been examined. A major portion of the results is based on the study of material produced from 25-lb ingot castings. Small expertmental-scale ingots were also employed in impurity, heat-treatment, and cracking studies. On the basis of the data obtained recommendattons concerning casting, fabrication, and heat-treatment techniques necessary to produce a fuel pin of satisfactory integrity are presented. Specifications as to allowable carbon, chromium, iron, nickel, oxygen, and zirconium content are recommended. (auth)

>A continuous process for the reduction of uranium hexafluoride to uranium tetrafluoride was developed and proved on a pilot-plant scale. Complete conversion to uranium tetrafluoride was realized by contacting gaseous uranium hexafluoride with hydrogen in a heated, vertical, open-tube reactor. The purity and density of the solid product met metal grade uranium tetrafluoride specifications. Some difficulty with the accumulation of fused uranium fluorides in the tower was encountered, however, and it was necessary to stop and desing the unit about every 8 to 24 hours. The reaction of uranium hexafluoride with gaseous trichloroethylene was stadied before the tests with hydrogen were made. Although the reduction to uranium tetrafluoride was complete, the solid product was highly contaminated with the organic by-products of the reaction and was quite low in density. Tests of this method were discontinued when promising results were obtained with hydrogen as the reductant. (auth)

Calibrations have resulted in conflicting data for the yield of neutrons from a teflon-polonium solution interface. The installation of the continuous DRUHM reaction system is approximately 60% complete. The Fluorox fluidized bed reactor was operated continuously for 12 hr, producing 1.6 Kg of UF/sub 6/. In homogeneous reactor studies, installation of a mock-up for in-pile slurry bomb heat removal tests was completed. From material balances, about 21/2 g of plutonium remain in loop P-1 after repeated washing and descaling treatments. A Sharples Model P-4 Super-DCanter was adequate for continuously discharging ThO/ sub 2/ cake and clarified supernate. In ion exchange studies, data were obtained on the complex ion equilibria in uranyl sulfate solutions. A continuous self- sustaining Darex dissolution and stripping run of 46 hr duration was made. In a hydrochlorination run of 35 hr duration, 97.4% of a 4.39 kg section of a STR subassembly was reacted with anhydrous HCI gas with a uranium loss to the sublimate of 0.095%. The studies of the dissolution of duminy zirconium fuel elements in fused salt with HF were continued at increased HF velocities. In waste processing studies, the design of an adiabatic self-sintering experiment is 90% complete and the construction of …