Framatome’s PROtect Enhanced Accident Tolerant Fuel (E-ATF) technology has reached a significant operational milestone at the Gösgen Nuclear Power Plant in Switzerland. With this achievement, Framatome’s E-ATF chromium-coated M5Framatome cladding becomes the world’s first ATF technology to operate with full length fuel rods above 60 GWd/tU, supporting licensing efforts and demonstrating its readiness for commercial use.
After four 12-month cycles of operation, during the standard spring outage at the Swiss reactor, visual examinations as well as dimensional changes measurement examinations were completed. They confirmed expected results and excellent performance already observed at the end of the three previous cycles of these full-length chromium-coated lead fuel rods. These lead fuel rods have now been reinserted for a fifth operational cycle, further expanding PROtect’s demonstration of enhanced safety and economic potential for utilities.
“This is the latest demonstration of our PROtect technology advancement and of our commitment to bring new and innovative solutions to the market,” said Lionel Gaiffe, Senior Executive Vice President of Framatome’s Fuel Business Unit. “The success of this project reflects the strong collaboration between Framatome and our customers, which is crucial for the industry and contributes to meeting future energy needs.”
Framatome’s PROtect technology incorporates chromium-coated cladding, which significantly enhances oxidation resistance, improves mechanical performance at high temperatures, and reduces hydrogen generation in the unlikely event of a loss of cooling.
“Framatome’s E-ATF technology opens the door for an easy transition towards safety enhanced core loadings with no change in fuel assembly design,” said René Sarrafian, Head of the Nuclear Fuel Division and Plant Vice Director of the Gösgen Nuclear Power Plant.
The lead fuel rods used in the Gösgen reactor consist of Framatome’s advanced chromium coating added to the state-of-the-art M5Framatome zirconium alloy cladding, with UO2 fuel pellets for some and with UO2 chromia-enhanced fuel pellets for the others. Following inspection in 2024, the rods were reloaded for a further fifth cycle. The fuel assembly was fabricated at Framatome’s fabrication facility in Lingen, Germany.
Framatome’s PROtect E-ATF program has accumulated operational experience across six reactors globally, spanning five different reactor types, further establishing its leadership in advanced nuclear fuel technologies.