-ray studies of the changes in characteristics of crystallographic texture with cold deformation of Zr‑2.5%Nb alloy plates by longitudinal and cross rolling up to 56% at the speed of 5…10 sec-1 were carried out. The original plates were made from longitudinal fragments and rings cut from Æ15.0´1.5 mm² tube, and were then annealed at 580 °C. Texture of the plates was studied by the method of inverse pole figures with calculation of the Kearns texture coefficient along the normal to the plate plane. Dependences of the texture coefficient on degrees of deformation of the plates are built. A discrepancy was found between texture coefficient values measured on different sides of the plates, which is associated with the straightening of the original tube fragments and invariance of “c”-axes distribution after subsequent annealing of the initial plates. By introducing corrections to the degree of deformation calculated from the parameters of the cross section of the original tube, such discrepancies were eliminated for the data on cross-rolling of the material. As a result, for both deformation schemes, two stages of changes in the texture coefficient with alloy deformation were revealed: the initial stage of its growth and the subsequent stage of minor changes. Both stages are mainly linear and have the boundary value of the texture coefficient equal to 0.65...0.68. To study the structural mechanisms of changes in the texture of the alloy, an original technique of comparative analysis of changes in the texture coefficient of the material and in the distribution of crystallographic orientations is applied. It is established that at the initial stage of changes in the texture coefficient with deformation in both schemes, the rotation of the crystallographic “c” axes of the material occurs abruptly, and it does at angles of more than 60°. This confirms the essential role of twinning in the texture changes of the alloy. In particular, we have shown that the initial stage is significantly dominated by the {102}á011ñ system of tensile twins. Connection of twinning with differences in texture changes at the longitudinal and cross rolling of the alloy is discussed.

The paper investigates the dependence of the transformation texture of Zr-2.5wt%Nb tubes and rods on the initial texture, the method of heating (furnacing, conductive heating, inductive heating) and cooling (furnace cooling, water quenching, water shower), stress, and thermal cycling. It was demonstrated that the primary factors determining the transformation texture are the initial texture and the heating rate for quenching. From the investigation results, a method of final thermal treatment of finished zirconium reactor core components (pressure tubes, guide tubes, and cladding fuel rods) is suggested, allowing the destruction of their texture without changing the well-established manufacturing process. The suggested SHF heating includes the use of the α→β→α transformation with fast heating up to the β-phase, subsequent quenching for texture destruction, and annealing for transformation from the metastable α'-state to the equilibrium double-phase αZr + βNb state.

The paper researches into the effect of the initial structural condition of Zr-2.5%Nb alloy, which is widely used in reactor engineering to manufacture reactor core components (mainly as a structural material for RBMK and CANDU pressure tubes), and of irradiation conditions (temperature, applied stress) on irradiation hardening and embrittlement. The reactor damage of Zr-2.5%Nb alloy was modeled with a method of high-energy 225 MeV (e,γ)-beam irradiation, which allows samples to be irradiated under strictly controlled stress conditions. The research has been carried out on Zr-2.5%Nb alloy exposed to four types of thermo-mechanical treatment. It has been found that the alloy is susceptible to intensive irradiation embrittlement irrespective of its initial condition, and the intensity of Zr-2.5%Nb irradiation hardening greatly depends on pre-treatment. In contrast to other conditions, Zr-2.5%Nb alloy is virtually not susceptible to irradiation hardening after high-speed high-frequency (SHF) heating, quenching, and subsequent annealing in the high-temperature range of the α-region, during which the double-phase α+βNb state with high dispersion of βNb (∼1023 m−3) precipitates develops. The obtained results are in good agreement with the post-reactor irradiation tensile test results. The study demonstrates the efficiency of high-energy (e,γ)-beam irradiation for investigating the irradiation hardening and embrittlement of zirconium alloys.

This work is a continuation of a series of works on the study of regularities and structural mechanisms of changes in characteristics of crystallographic texture during cold deformation of plates made of Zr2.5%Nb alloy. Effects of influence of surface cleanliness of the plates on the textural regularities during their rolling were investigated. For this, longitudinal fragments of the tube Æ15.0´1.5 mm² were used, flattened, annealed at 580°C in a vacuum of 1.5...3.0 Pa and rolled along the axis of the original tube with various degrees deformation up to 56%, which is likened to longitudinal rolling of plates. Techniques of maximally uniform straightening of tube fragments were used. An analysis of the results of studies of textural changes during cross rolling of plates, straightened from rings of the same tube and pretreated under similar conditions, is also carried out. To analyze the results, the method of inverse pole figures was used, which, in these studies, is distinguished by the possibility of achieving satisfactory accuracy in calculating the integral characteristics of texture. On this basis, the Kearns textural coefficient was calculated along the normal to the plates’ plane. Corrections were introduced for texture dissimilarity along the thickness of the plates, which is caused by the unbending of the preliminary blanks. Additionally, the analysis of texture distributions was carried out using original techniques. According to the results obtained – as a result of X-ray measuring from the plates’ surface – oscillations of the course of changes in the texture coefficient were revealed. This is associated with an alternating process of relaxation of residual stresses during deformation. It has been established that this effect is initiated from the near-surface regions, is associated with a near-surface impurity, and in some cases can penetrate to a considerable depth of the plates. The twinning nature of such regularities is confirmed and active systems of twins are noted.

A facility allowing to conduct experiments on dummy fuel rods up to 250 mm long, at temperatures up to 700 °C is presented. The designed facility is unique in that the conditions for the tests to be conducted on it most closely resemble (except for irradiation) those of fuel rods operation, loading and storage in SFDSF. All test parameters are programmed and regulated by special sensors, which brings the experiment on fuel rod temperature effect and pressure under the cladding as close as possible to the conditions of fuel rod operation in reactor and further storage in SFDSF. Hydride Reorientation Test (HRT) was conducted on dummy fuel rod sunder internal pressure of 3...5 MPa (at room temperature) and with hydrogen concentration of 50...300 ppm in the modes that simulate SNF handling with limiting heating to 410 °С and accidents with seven 410↔300 and 410↔180 °С thermal cycles. It has been demonstrated that the effectiveness of the influence of the test conditions in the specified modes on hydride reorientation increases with increasing hydrogen concentration and tangential stresses in the dummy fuel rod claddings. It has been shown that the test samples design, control and measurement devices, as well as the parameters estimated during the test and further investigations fully meet the test requirements.