Water reactor fuel cladding

Patent · Tue Sep 23 04:00:00 EDT 1986

OSTI ID:5151748

Foster, J P

A nuclear fuel element cladding tube is described which consists of: concentric tubular layers including a wrought niobium base material layer inside of an outermost layer; the outermost layer, metallurgically bonded to the wrought niobium base material layer by coextrusion; the outermost layer composed of a zirconium base alloy characterized by excellent resistance to corrosion caused by exposure to high temperature and pressure aqueous environments: the wrought niobium base material layer consisting essentially of up to about 59 w/o zirconuim, up to about 0.25 w/o tantalum, up to about 300 ppm of oxygen and the balance being essentially niobium; and the wrought niobium base material layer having a wall thickness of at least 3 mils and characterized by improved resistance to crack propagation under reactor operating conditions compared to the zirconium alloy.

• Assignee: Westinghouse Electric Corp., Pittsburgh, PA
• Patent Number(s): US 4613479
• OSTI ID: 5151748
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS
210100* -- Power Reactors
Nonbreeding
Light-Water Moderated
Boiling Water Cooled
210200 -- Power Reactors
Nonbreeding
Light-Water Moderated
Nonboiling Water Cooled
36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
360103 -- Metals & Alloys-- Mechanical Properties
ALLOYS
COEXTRUSION
CORROSION RESISTANCE
CRACK PROPAGATION
DIMENSIONS
ELEMENTS
EXTRUSION
FABRICATION
FUEL CANS
FUEL ELEMENTS
LAYERS
MATERIALS
MATERIALS WORKING
METALLURGY
NIOBIUM ALLOYS
NIOBIUM BASE ALLOYS
NONMETALS
OXYGEN
PRESSURE EFFECTS
REACTOR COMPONENTS
REACTORS
TANTALUM ADDITIONS
TANTALUM ALLOYS
TEMPERATURE EFFECTS
THICKNESS
TUBES
WATER COOLED REACTORS
ZIRCONIUM ALLOYS
ZIRCONIUM BASE ALLOYS