Patent Number: 052532780
Section: claims

1. A fuel assembly including a lower tie plate, a plurality of fuel rods having the lower end thereof supported by said lower tie plate, fuel spacers for maintaining gaps between said fuel rods, and a channel box having creep deformation inhibition portions formed on the sidewalls thereof and encompassing said fuel spacers, characterized in that said channel box has fuel spacer support means projecting inwardly from an inner surface of said channel box and supporting said fuel spacers in a direction transverse to an axial direction of the fuel assembly. 2. A fuel assembly according to claim 1, wherein said fuel spacer support means includes projections formed by projecting inwardly part of the inner surface of the sidewalls of said channel box. 3. A fuel assembly according to claim 1, wherein said fuel spacer support means includes projections that extend thinly in the axial direction. 4. A fuel assembly according to claim 1, wherein said lower tie plate is equipped on the outer side surface of each sidewall thereof with recesses extending downward from its upper surface, and said creep deformation inhibition portions are fitted into said recesses of said lower tie plate. 5. A fuel assembly according to claim 1, wherein the height of said fuel spacer support means in said axial direction is greater than the height of said creep deformation inhibition portions. 6. A fuel assembly according to claim 1, wherein said creep deformation inhibition portions are formed at the lower part of said channel box, and the gap width between the inner surface of the straight portion of the sidewall of said channel box at the upper part of said fuel assembly and said fuel rods positioned at the outermost periphery is greater than the width between the inner surface of said creep deformation inhibition portions at the lower part of said fuel assembly which is the closest to said fuel rods, and said fuel rods at the outermost periphery. 7. A fuel assembly according to claim 1, wherein said fuel spacer support portions are disposed near the corners of said channel box. 8. A fuel assembly including a lower tie plate, a plurality of fuel rods having the lower end thereof supported by said lower tie plate, fuel spacers for maintaining gaps between said fuel rods, and a channel box encompassing at least said fuel spacers, characterized in that said lower tie plate is equipped on the outer surface side of each sidewall thereof with recesses extending downward from the upper surface of said lower tie plate, and a width between mutually opposed parts of said fuel spacers which come into contact with said channel box when said channel box is fitted thereon is smaller than a width between said receses which are opposite each other. 9. A fuel assembly according to claim 8, wherein said spacer support portions are disposed near the corners of said channel box. 10. A fuel assembly including an upper tie plate, a lower tie plate, a plurality of fuel rods having both end portions thereof supported by said upper and lower tie plates, fuel spacers for maintaining gaps between said fuel rods, and a channel box having creep deformation inhibition portions formed on the sidewalls thereof, characterized in that said channel box has fuel spacer support means projecting inwardly from an inner surface of said channel box and supporting said fuel spacers in a direction transverse to an axial direction of the fuel assembly, and tie plate support means projecting inwardly from the inner surface of the channel box and supporting said upper tie plate in said transverse direction. 11. A fuel assembly according to claim 10, wherein said fuel spacer support means includes projections formed by projecting inwardly part of the inner surface of sidewalls of said channel box. 12. A fuel assembly according to claim 10, wherein said fuel spacer support means includes projections extending thinly in the axial direction. 13. A fuel assembly according to claim 10, wherein said fuel spacer support means are disposed near the corners of said channel box. 14. A fuel assembly according to claim 10, wherein said lower tie plate has recesses extending downward from its upper surface on the outer surface side of each of its sidewalls, and said creep deformation inhibition portions are fitted into said recesses of said lower tie plate. 15. A fuel assembly according to claim 10, wherein the height of said fuel spacer support means in said axial direction is greater than the height of said creep deformation inhibition portions. 16. A fuel assembly including an upper tie plate, a lower tie plate, a plurality of fuel rods having both end portions thereof supported by said upper and lower tie plates, fuel spacers for maintaining gaps between said fuel rods, and a channel box for encompassing the fuel spacers and said upper and lower tie plates characterized in that said lower tie plate has recesses extending downward from its upper surface on the outer side surface of each of its sidewalls, and a width between mutually opposed parts of said fuel spacers which come into contact with said channel box when said channel box is fitted thereon and a width between mutually opposed outer surfaces on the sidewalls of said upper tie plate which come into contact with said channel box are smaller than a width between said recesses which are opposite each other. 17. A fuel assembly according to claim 16, further comprising tie plate support means including projections formed by projecting inwardly part of an inner surface of the sidewall of said channel box. 18. A fuel assembly according to claim 17, wherein said tie plate support means includes projections extending thinly in the axial direction. 19. A fuel assembly including: a plurality of fuel rods;  a lower tie plate holding the lower end portions of said fuel rods and having a plurality of coolant supply holes for guiding a coolant between said fuel rods;  fuel spacers for maintaining gaps between said fuel rods; and  a channel box having creep deformation inhibition portions formed of the sidewalls thereof, and encompassing at its lower end said lower tie plate and thereby forming an coolant leak passage with, and between, said lower tie plate; wherein said channel box has fuel spacer support means that project inwardly from an inner surface of said channel box and supports said fuel spacers in a direction transverse to an axial direction of the fuel assembly, and means for generating a coolant flow for inhibiting coolant leak from said coolant leak passage inclusive of said coolant holes positioned at the outermost periphery among said coolant holes being provided to said lower tie plate.  a plurality of first fuel assemblies; and  a plurality of second fuel assemblies;  each of said first fuel assemblies including:  a plurality of fuel rods, first fuel spacers for maintaining gaps between said fuel rods and a first channel box encompassing said first fuel spacers, whereby said first fuel spacers have spacer support means projecting outwardly from an outer surface of said first fuel spacers and come into contact with the inner surface of said first channel box and support said first fuel spacers in a direction transverse to an axial direction;  each of said second fuel assemblies including:  a plurality of fuel rods, second fuel spacers for maintaining gaps between said fuel rods, and a second channel box having spacer support means projecting inwardly from an inner surface of said second channel box and supporting said second fuel spacers in the direction transverse to the axial direction. 20. A fuel assembly including a lower tie plate, a plurality of fuel rods having the lower end portions thereof supported by said lower tie plate, fuel spacers for maintaining gaps between said fuel rods, and a channel box having creep deformation inhibition portions formed on the sidewalls thereof and encompassing said fuel spacers, characterized in that said fuel spacers are equipped on the spacer sidewalls with resilient members coming into contact with the inner surface of said channel box and supporting said fuel spacers in a direction transverse to an axial direction of the fuel assembly. 21. A channel box including creep deformation inhibition portions formed at the lower part of sidewalls thereof and a plurality of fuel spacer support portions projecting inwardly from the inner surface of the sidewalls. 22. A channel box according to claim 21, further comprising a plurality of tie plate support means projecting inwardly from the inner surface of the sidewalls, for supporting an upper tie plate are provided at the upper end portion of the sidewalls. 23. A channel box according to claim 21, wherein said spacer support portions are capable of supporting a plurality of fuel spacers in a direction transverse to an axial direction and extend thinly in the axial direction and are provided at the upper part of said sidewalls. 24. A channel box according to claim 21, wherein said fuel spacer support portions extend from the lower and to an upper part of said sidewalls. 25. A production method of a channel box characterized in that two U-shaped members are coupled to form a cylinder member and then part of the sidewalls of said cylinder member is projected inwardly from an inner surface of said cylinder member to form a fuel spacer support portion. 26. A production method of a channel box according to claim 25, wherein corrugated portions which are resistant to creep deformation are formed on said sidewalls with the formation of said fuel spacer support portions. 27. A production method of a channel box according to claim 26, wherein said cylinder member having said fuel spacer support portions formed therein is heated to an annealing temperature so as to effect pipe expansion molding. 28. A core of a nuclear reactor comprising: 29. A core of a nuclear reactor according to claim 28, wherein the thickness of said second channel box is smaller than that of said first channel box. 30. A core of a nuclear reactor according to claim 28, wherein a width between the outer surfaces of opposed sidewalls of said second channel box is smaller than the corresponding width of said first channel box and the thickness of said second channel box is smaller than that of said first channel box. 31. A core of a nuclear reactor according to claim 30, wherein the width between the outer surfaces of mutually opposed second sidewalls of said second fuel spacer, which are adjacent to said second channel box, is smaller than the corresponding width of mutually opposed first sidewalls of said first fuel spacer, which are adjacent to said first channel box. 32. A core of a nuclear reactor according to claim 30, wherein said first fuel assembly includes a first lower tie plate having a first insertion portion inserted into a fuel support fixture, said second fuel assembly includes a second lower tie plate having a second insertion portion inserted into a fuel support fixture, the axis of said first insertion portion is in agreement with the axis of said first fuel assembly and the axis of said second insertion portion is deviated from the axis of said second fuel assembly toward a control rod inserted between said first and second fuel assemblies. 33. A core of a nuclear reactor according to claim 28, wherein a width between the inner surfaces of mutually opposed sidewalls of said second channel box is greater than the corresponding width of said first channel box and the thickness of said second channel box is smaller than that of said first channel box.