The Experimental Fuels Facility (EFF) is a 5,000-square-foot nuclear fuel fabrication facility at Idaho National Laboratory's Materials and Fuels Complex. EFF houses a wide range of fuel fabrication and material handling capabilities. Established in 2012, EFF supports INL's mission as the lead nuclear energy research lab for the nation.
Equipment and processes in EFF support customers in DOE's Office of Nuclear Energy and private industry partners. EFF hosts a wide range of INL's new lab-scale capabilities for supporting the nation's need to develop even safer, more reliable nuclear fuels.
Basic uses of EFF include uranium and uranium alloy casting and extrusion, processing uranium metal and ceramics at all enrichments, fabrication and handling of alloys and powders, and a machine shop with radiological and non-radiological areas.
Uranium and uranium-alloy casting
Uranium and uranium-alloy extrusion
Uranium machining equipment capable of processing unalloyed and alloyed uranium metal and ceramics at all enrichments
Inert-atmosphere uranium-processing glovebox line for fabrication and handling of alloys and powders
Multiple furnaces with temperature capability up to 2,000°C in vacuum, argon, air, hydrogen, and nitrogen atmospheres
Nonradiological machine shop to support advanced fuel development
Instruments: