Abstract: In order to evaluate the radiation performance of domestic fuel rods at high burnup level, the metallographic test of a domestic pressurized-water reactor (PWR) nuclear station spent fuel rod with the burnup of 40 GW•d/tU was done in the Fuel and Material Examination Facility (303 hot cell) of China Institute of Atomic Energy (CIAE). The contents of the metallographic test include macro- and micro-structure examination of fuel pellets, waterside oxidation and hydride distribution of cladding, pellet-cladding interaction (PCI) and so on. The test and analysis results show that under the burnup of 40 GW•d/tU, the shape of the pellets is not changed obviously, the range of fuel porosity is 3.3%-5.8%, the grains of fuel are equiaxed crystal, and the average size of these grains is 7.2 μm. Waterside oxidation of the cladding is normal, and the maximum thickness of waterside oxide film is 23 μm. The content and distribution of hydride are normal, the maximum hydrogen content is 150 μg/g and the hydrogen content keeps a proportional relation with the thickness of waterside oxide film nearly. There is a slight localized corrosion in the inner wall of the cladding. The gap of pellets and cladding is existent and the PCI phenomenon is not found.