OREANDA-NEWS. Global Nuclear Fuel (GNF) today introduced its next generation fuel design, GNF3.

Based on evolutionary design changes and advanced technology developed by GNF, the GNF3 fuel assembly design will provide customers with improved fuel economics, increased performance and flexibility in operation while maintaining the superior reliability of GNF2, the most reliable design in GNF’s history.

“We designed GNF3 to deliver more power while reducing overall fuel cycle costs,” said Amir Vexler, Chief Operator Officer of GNF-Americas. “The enhanced GNF3 design will save utilities money by reducing batch fraction, lowering the average enrichment in fuel reloads and extracting more power from the core.”

In addition to improved fuel utilization and performance, GNF3 is designed and manufactured to be more resistant to debris capture and to exhibit the best available corrosion resistance of any boiling water reactor fuel. GNF3, which features a robust structural design that is built to last, will be fabricated at GNF’s state-of-the-art facility in Wilmington, N.C.

GNF3 is available in lead use assembly quantities to customers today.  Eight GNF3 lead use assemblies were loaded in two plants in January and are currently operating as designed (four each at Entergy’s River Bend Station and Exelon’s LaSalle County Station). GNF3 is scheduled to be available for full reloads in 2018.  

GNF offers a full portfolio of nuclear engineering services that includes expert core and fuel cycle designs, predictive reports including pellet cladding interaction risk assessments, cyber compliant core monitoring with expansion capability into fleet analytics, fuel examination services, and industry-leading reactor operational consulting for issues such as channel distortion mitigation, chemistry transients, failed fuel management and long-term fuel storage.

About GNF

Global Nuclear Fuel (GNF) is a world-leading supplier of boiling water reactor fuel, including uranium dioxide and MOX fuel and fuel-related engineering services. GNF is a GE-led joint venture with Hitachi, Ltd. and Toshiba Corporation and operates primarily through Global Nuclear Fuel-Americas, LLC in Wilmington, N.C., and Global Nuclear Fuel-Japan Co. Ltd. in Kurihama, Japan.

About GEH

Based in Wilmington, N.C., GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GEH) is a world-leading provider of advanced reactors and nuclear services. Established in June 2007, GEH is a global nuclear alliance created by GE and Hitachi to serve the global nuclear industry. The nuclear alliance executes a single, strategic vision to create a broader portfolio of solutions, expanding its capabilities for new reactor and service opportunities. The alliance offers customers around the world the technological leadership required to effectively enhance reactor performance, power output and safety.