Abstract
Abstract: A typical light water reactor (LWR) has components like the clad, the internals, the reactor pressure vessel (RPV), the heat exchanger tubes, etc., made from different materials. Some of these components experience pressure and temperature effects while others experience an additional contribution from high neutron flux. These components undergo degradation to various extents based on the severity of service conditions and their inherent material properties. This chapter presents an overview of the various deformation modes that materials are known to undergo under reactor operating conditions, and the known theoretical or empirical relations between the crucial material and environmental parameters are outlined. Materials degradation phenomena briefly described in the chapter include radiation damage, plastic deformation, fracture and fatigue, following which radiation effects on these phenomena, as well as corrosion are enumerated. Degradation mechanisms of concern to specific nuclear reactor structures are detailed in the last section with emphasis on fuel, cladding and internals.
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