Abstract
X-ray diffraction (XRD) and analytical electron microscopy (AEM) have been used to characterise microstructural and microchemical changes produced by neutron irradiation of Zr-2.5Nb, Zircaloy-2 and Zircaloy-4 nuclear reactor core components. In many cases there is a clear relationship between the radiation damage microstructure and the physical properties of in-service core components. For example, the difference in delayed hydride cracking velocity between the inlet and outlet ends of Zr-2.5Nb pressure tubes in PHWR reactors can be directly correlated with variations in a-dislocation density and β-Zr phase decomposition. For the same tubes, the variation of fracture toughness has the same fluence dependence as dislocation loop density and, in addition, improvements in corrosion behaviour can be linked with decreases in the Nb concentration in the α-Zr matrix due to Nb precipitation during irradiation. For PWR and BWR reactors, the onset of “breakaway” growth in Zircaloy-4 guide tubes can be directly correlated with the appearance of basal plane dislocation loops in the microstructure.
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