ATF Claddings after High-Temperature Steam Oxidation: WDS and Nanoindentation Studies to Characterize in-depth Material Changes

Abstract

After the Fukushima accident in 2011 year, ATF nuclear fuel cladding concept was accelerated to achieve the reactor operation with the new accident tolerant structural materials. However, several designed solutions do not fulfil the accident tolerant concept but particularly increase the corrosion resistance of Zr-cladding tubes at normal operating conditions, so-called “Advaced Technology Fuel, EATF”. Cr-coated zirconium claddings following the first concept, have been the widely tested and the first full Cr-coated fuel rods have been planned to operate in LWR reactor conditions around the 2022 year. Our contribution describes the Cr-coated Zr-%1Nb cladding tube microstructure after high-temperature steam oxidation at 1200°C by means of Scanning Electron Microscopy and nanoindenta-tion methods. The article is focused on WDS line-profile studies of oxygen and chromium diffusion into the Zr-matrix. The increased Cr-diffusion with oxygen is evident causing a change in local me-chanical properties which is well-described by measurements of nanohardness and Young's modulus. In addition, the developed methodology of the WDS & nanoindentation line-analyses was also opti-mized to apply in hot-cell conditions to measure the effect of neutron-irradiation on the different coat-ings and coating/matrix interface.