Patent Number: 046363521
Section: claims

1. In a nuclear fuel rod comprising a metallic tubular cladding containing a plurality of nuclear fuel pellets, said pellets containing enriched uranium-235, the improvement comprising: a plurality of ceramic wafers, each wafer comprising 2. In a nuclear fuel rod as defined in claim 1, the improvement wherein said uranium dioxide comprises a naturally occurring uranium dioxide. 3. In a nuclear fuel rod as defined in claim 1, the improvement wherein said uranium dioxide comprises depleted uranium dioxide containing less uranium-235 than naturally occurring uranium dioxide. 4. In a nuclear fuel rod as defined in claim 3, the improvement wherein said depleted uranium dioxide is substantially devoid of the uranium-235 isotope. 5. In a nuclear fuel rod as defined in claim 1, the improvement wherein said wafer comprises between about 1-8 percent by weight gadolinium oxide. 6. In a nuclear fuel rod as defined in claim 1, the improvement wherein said wafer has a diameter substantially the same as said nuclear fuel pellets and a thickness of between about 10-100 mils. 7. In a nuclear fuel rod as defined in claim 1, the improvement wherein said nuclear fuel pellets are comprised of uranium dioxide, plutonium dioxide, and mixtures thereof. 8. In a nuclear fuel rod as defined in claim 1, the improvement wherein said adjacent nuclear fuel pellets have confronting concave faces. 9. In a nuclear fuel rod as defined in claim 1, the improvement wherein adjacent fuel pellets in the region of high power generation have a wafer therebetween, while no wafer is disposed between adjacent fuel pellets in areas of low power generation. 10. In a nuclear fuel rod as defined in claim 1 wherein a portion of said wafers contain a varying amount of gadolinium oxide relative to the amount of gadolinium oxide in other wafers of said plurality of wafers. 11. A wafer for use in a nuclear fuel rod, to freeze out volatile fission products produced by nuclear fuel pellets within said rod, comprising a sintered mixture for gadolinium oxide and uranium dioxide, said uranium dioxide having no more of the uranium-235 isotope than is present in natural uranium dioxide. 12. A wafer as defined in claim 11 wherein said uranium dioxide comprises a naturally occurring uranium dioxide. 13. A wafer as defined in claim 11, wherein said uranium dioxide comprises depleted uranium dioxide containing less uranium-235 isotope than naturally occurring uranium dioxide. 14. A wafer as defined in claim 13, wherein said depleted uranium dioxide is substantially devoid of the uranium-235 isotope. 15. A wafer as defined in claim 11, wherein said wafer comprises between about 1-8 percent by weight gadolinium oxide. 16. A wafer as defined in claim 11, wherein said wafer has a diameter substantially the same as the nuclear fuel pellets with which it is used, and a thickness of between about 10-100 mils.