Patent Number: 046719261
Section: claims

1. A nuclear fuel assembly comprising a plurality of vertical fuel rods, a top tie plate arranged at the upper ends of the fuel rods, a fuel channel formed with approximately square cross-section and surrounding said fuel rods and said top tie plate, and a fixing member of stainless steel fixed to the fuel channel, said top tie plate having a vertical, upwardly-directed projection disposed in a corner portion of said fuel channel and arranged in a tensile force-transmitting mechanical connection with said fixing member via a vertical bolt which is passed through a through-hole provided in said fixing member, said bolt being made of a material whose coefficient of thermal expansion is smaller than the coefficient of thermal expansion of said stainless steel, and wherein said bolt is surrounded by a sleeve means comprising a metallic sleeve member, a first engaging means for compressive engagement between said sleeve member and said fixing member, a second engaging means for compressive engagement between said sleeve member and said projection, and a third engaging means for compressive engagement between said sleeve member and said bolt, said second and third engaging means providing substantially no play between said bolt, said sleeve member and said projection, and said first engaging means providing such play between said fixing member and said projection that said metallic sleeve which is loaded with a compressive force corresponding to a major part of the tensile force acting on said bolt, said sleeve being made of a metallic material whose coefficient of thermal expansion is smaller than the coefficient of thermal expansion of said stainless steel. 2. Fuel assembly according to claim 1, in which said sleeve and said bolt are made of the same material. 3. Fuel assembly according to one of the preceding claims, in which said sleeve is arranged in said through-hole provided in said fixing portion. 4. Fuel assembly according to claim 1, in which said sleeve has a vertical extension which constitutes at least 40% of the vertical extension of a part of said bolt which is loaded with a constant tensile force. 5. A fuel assembly according to claim 1, in which said sleeve has a vertical extension which constitutes at least 60% of the vertical extension of a part of said bolt which is loaded with a constant tensile force. 6. A fuel assembly according to claim 1, in which the coefficient of thermal expansion of said sleeve is equal to or smaller than the coefficient of thermal expansion of said bolt. 7. A fuel assembly according to claim 1, in which the play between said fixing member and said projection comprises a gap that is not reduced to 0 upon heating the fuel assembly to operating temperature. 8. A fuel assembly according to claim 1, in which the thermal expansion coefficient of said bolt is less than a thermal expansion coefficient of said fixing member and the thermal expansion coefficient of said sleeve is less than the thermal expansion coefficient of said bolt, and in which the difference between the coefficients of said bolt and said fixing member is substantially smaller than the difference between the coefficients of said sleeve and said bolt. 9. A fuel assembly according to claim 8, in which there is substantially no gap between said fixing member and said projection.