Abstract
Zirconium alloy tubing in the cold-worked condition has proved susceptible to short-term brittle transgranular cracking when exposed to iodine vapour over the temperature range 250–510 °C at tensile hoop stresses close to the 0.2% proof level. Thermal annealing reduced the cracking susceptibility of Zircaloy fabricated by cold-drawing but did not completely remove it after 850 °C, 1 h; in contrast a 650 °C, l h anneal was sufficient to prevent cracking in tube-reduced Zircaloy. Textural differences arising from the forming processes are considered to be responsible for this behaviour. Since the failures resulted from metal-gas interactions, the dominant mechanism is suggested to be one of mechanical fracture rather than electrochemical attack, a conclusion supported by results of fractographic examination.
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