Criteria for the selection of materials for water-cooled reactors., with comments on D₂O reactors

Technical Report · Fri Jul 06 00:00:00 EDT 1962

OSTI ID:4759900

Lewis, W. B.

When intense radiation, high temperatures, and high mechanical stresses act in combination on different materials in contact, the familiar classification of materials into solids, liquids, and gases is a handicap rather than a help. Water becomes a source of H₂ that will pass into a metal and change its resistance to stress. Hydrogen diffuses rapidly through metals even at water temperatures. At the higher temperatures in nuclear fuel, O₂ and C diffuse rapidly. In some ceramic fuels the operating temperatures are so high that even heavy atoms will dwell less than a msec in any given lattice position. With so high a rate of the breaking of bonds, diffusion and interaction, the contribution of all substances present to the general ecology needs consideration. The stabilization of the mechanical properties of metals when bombarded by fast neutrons and exposed to wandering atoms, especially H, has to be studied. The behavior of Zr alloys and UO/sub 2/ in such environments has been extensively studied, and useful design criteria have been set and explored. (auth)

• Research Organization: Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., Chalk River, Ontario (Canada)
• NSA Number: NSA-17-004230
• OSTI ID: 4759900
• Report Number(s): DL-51; AECL-1567
• Resource Relation: Related Information: For presentation at the AIME Symposium on Selection of Materials for Gas-cooled and Water-cooled Reactors, New York, NY (United States), 31 Oct 1962
• Country of Publication: Canada
• Language: English

Related Subjects

REACTOR TECHNOLOGY
ATOMS
BUILDING MATERIALS
CARBON
CERAMICS
DIFFUSION
FAST NEUTRONS
FUELS
HEAVY WATER COOLANT
HIGH TEMPERATURE
HYDROGEN
INTERACTIONS
IRRADIATION
LATTICES
MATERIALS TESTING
MECHANICAL PROPERTIES
METALS
OXYGEN
PLANNING
RADIATION EFFECTS
REACTORS
STABILITY
STRESSES
THERMAL STRESSES
URANIUM DIOXIDE
WATER COOLANT
ZIRCONIUM ALLOYS