Pellet, fuel

{
  "id": "MLC-T-NUC-000360",
  "term": "Pellet, fuel",
  "field": "Nuclear energy and radiation",
  "definition": "A thimble-sized ceramic cylinder (approximately 3/8-inch in diameter and 5/8-inch in length), consisting of uranium (typically uranium oxide, UO_2), which has been enriched to increase the concentration of uranium-235 (U-235) to fuel a nuclear reactor. Modern reactor cores in pressurized-water reactors (PWRs) and boiling-water reactors (BWRs) may contain up to 10 million pellets, stacked in the fuel rods that form fuel assemblies.",
  "references": [
    "NRC Glossary"
  ],
  "url": "https://mlchart.com/terminology/nuclear/pellet-fuel/"
}