ICONE15-10362 DEVELOPMENT OF HEAT-RESISTANT NEUTRON SHIELDING RESIN FOR HIGH PAYLOAD METAL CASK

Abstract

A new neutron shielding resin has been developed for a dual-purpose metal cask. The resin is composed of a cycloaliphatic epoxy, anhydrous acid, catalyst, aluminum hydroxide and boron tetracarbide. Its long-term stability was verified by thermal degradation tests. Estimated weight loss of the resin during storage was about 1 - 2 %. Because the curing reaction of epoxy and curing reagents was moderate at room temperature, a large amount of resin could be treated at one time which would lower fabrication cost. The fabrication process was verified by a full-scale mock-up test. No significant voids or cracks were found in the resin and uniform elemental composition was confirmed.