Establishing and Sustaining a Technical Program to Achieve Zero Fuel Failures

Abstract

In 2006, Chief Nuclear Officers (CNOs) of electric utilities operating 103 commercial reactors in the United States (U.S.) formally endorsed an initiative to achieve failure-free fuel performance by the end of 2010. This became known as the Zero-by-Ten Fuel Failure Initiative. Support of the Initiative manifested during a meeting at the Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO) while reviewing poor nuclear fuel performance trends. This paper provides a brief review of some of the drivers that caused those trends, the Initiative elements designed to address them, and a review of the technical program that helped achieve, and thus far sustain, improved fuel performance.