Creating Hydride Rim Structures in Zircaloy 4 Cladding Tubes to Mimic High Burnup
- Idaho National Laboratory
During their long service in commercial light water reactors, zirconium alloy cladding tubes are subject to oxidation and subsequent hydrogen pickup which can degrade the materials mechanical properties [1]. These degradations can lead to premature cladding ruptures during reactor power transients [2] as well as negatively impact the claddings post quench ductility following high temperature steam oxidation in thermal hydraulic transients [3]. Hydrogen has low solid solubility in zirconium and usually precipitates as brittle zirconium hydride platelets in the cladding metal matrix. Due to temperature driven diffusion (Soret effect) and the grain texture of stress relieved zirconium metal tubes, these hydrides precipitate with a circumferential orientation near the outer surface of the cladding tubes forming a hydride rim which can serve as a site for crack initiation during circumferential ‘hoop’ loading of the cladding [4rim formation][5]. In order to better understand the effect of hydride rims on the fracture behavior of stress relieved zirconium alloy cladding tubes a procedure to produce these rim-like structures is being developed at Idaho National Laboratory (INL).
- Research Organization:
- Idaho National Laboratory (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Nuclear Energy (NE), Fuel Cycle Technologies (NE-5)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC07-05ID14517
- OSTI ID:
- 1974795
- Report Number(s):
- INL/CON-21-62635-Rev000
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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