Use of Computer Codes in Estimating Fuel Element Fabrication Costs

Advanced Fuel Cycle Cost Basis Report: Module D1-1: Uranium-based Ceramic LWR Fuel Fabrication (Rev.2)

“…This team's analysis included the generation of "complexity factors" used to modify the costs of the major LCC elements of the advanced fuel fabrication plant types. Algorithms of the type described in an earlier Nuclear Technology paper ) and other papers (Lotts et al 1972;Lotts, Washburn, and Homan 1968) were utilized in this process. For non-UOX fabrication facilities, a bottom- up design and cost estimate were not performed at the same detail level that it was for UOX; however, the PWR-UOX estimate generated by the ORNL/TM-6501 team served as a high-quality starting point or "reference plant" for estimating new and modified "subject" fuel fabrication plants of higher complexity.…”

Advanced Fuel Cycle Cost Basis Report: Module D1-4 and Module D1-5 Ceramic Pelletized Sodium-Cooled Fast Reactor (SFR) Fuel Fabrication Ceramic Vibrocompacted Fuel Fabrication

“…For non-UOX cylindrical clad fuels modifications to the UOX "reference" fuel design and "subject" fuel fabrication facility design were made on the basis of fuel meat composition, fuel structure complexity, material-handling difficulty, radiation environment, process building safety and security requirements, and recurring resource requirement differences (manpower, purchased materials, and utility usage). All of the "reference LWR UOX fuel" to "alternate subject fuel" plant design changes were embodied in ORNL-developed algorithms (Lotts and Washburn 1968) written in a mid-1970s FORTRAN computer code called FABCOST. The computer-generated life cycle costs for each fabrication plant type were then tabulated and published in a set of NASAP documents published by ORNL from 1978-1980.…”