Uranium silicide

Bourns, W. T., Corrosion Testing of Uranium Silicide Fuel Specimens, AECL-2 718 (1968)... 

Crystal Chemical Studies of the 5/-Series of Elements. VIII. Crystal Structure Studies of Uranium Silicides and of CeSia, NpSi3 and PuSia. Acta crystallogr. (London) 2, 94 (1949). 

Uranium Silicide, USij, is obtained from a mixture of urano-uranic oxide (56 parts), silica (180 parts), aluminium filings and flowers... 

The silicides of the actinides have not been widely characterized. A uranium silicide of the form U3Si2 has received the maximum amount of study owing to its use as a dispersion fuel in research reactors. Another common phase observed for actinide silicides is AnSi2. One of the common synthetic routes to the silicides is the reaction of actinide fluorides, for example, A11F4, with elemental Si at high temperatures. One of the thermodynamic driving forces for this reaction is the release of S1F4. 

The diverse fuel types considered are A1 + Al-U alloys, A1 + Al-uranium oxides, A1 + Al-uranium silicide and A1 + Al-UMo. 

Uranium Silicides. Several compounds have been reported the most interest has been shown in USi2. 

The coefficients of thermal expansion in most investigations have been determined with the use of the dilatometer, and only in individual cases [891, 920], and in work on uranium silicides and other work, by the x-ray structural analysis method. Data obtained in the laboratory using a quartz dilatometer are marked by an asterisk the satisfactory reliability of such data is also noted by Nowotny [92]. 

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