High-temperature oxidation and quenching of chromium-coated zirconium alloy ATF cladding tubes with and w/o pre-damage

Oxidation of Silicon Carbide Composites for Nuclear Applications at Very High Temperatures in Steam

“…For instance, one-hour oxidation of Zry-4 would theoretically result in an oxide scale of 2400 µm; and a Zry cladding tube with a typical thickness of 500 µm would be completely oxidized within 2-3 min. In comparison with other ATF cladding concepts, the maximum temperatures that chromium-coated Zr alloys can withstand are around 1200-1300 • C [22] and for FeCrAl alloys 1300-1400 • C [23].…”

Effect of bias voltage on the microstructure and high‐temperature steam oxidation behavior of Cr coatings prepared by multi‐arc plating on Zircaloy‐4 alloy

“…In the current study, besides the known degradation mechanisms for the Cr coating (oxidation, diffusion of Cr into the zirconium alloy bulk, volatilization at very high temperatures), the grain boundary diffusion of Zr into the Cr coating has been considered as another essential mechanism for the loss of the coating protection. [ 10 ] For example, Liu et al [ 9 ] have observed that the outward diffused Zr on the Cr grain boundaries reacts with the Cr 2 O 3 scale as Zr reaches the Cr 2 O 3 /Cr interface, and this reaction would further lead to the thickness decrease of the Cr 2 O 3 scale. However, in this study, due to the large thickness of the prepared coating and the relatively short oxidation time, we have not observed Zr signals at the Cr 2 O 3 /Cr interface, so it can be considered that Zr diffusion caused the Cr coating failure has not yet occurred.…”

“…So far, numerous types of coatings have been proposed by researchers for the surface modification of zirconium alloy nuclear fuel cladding tubes, mainly including metal coatings, [8][9][10] ceramic coatings, [11][12][13] and multicomponent composite coatings. [14][15][16] Among these coatings, the metallic Cr coating has good corrosion and oxidation resistance, excellent mechanical strength and wear resistance, favorable adhesion with zirconium alloy substrates, and a relatively low thermal neutron absorption cross-section, [17][18][19][20] which is considered the most promising candidate material for zirconium alloy cladding coating.…”

Safety Analysis of Chromium-Coated Accident-Tolerant Fuels with Increased Enrichment and Extended Burnup [Slides]

“…The state-of-knowledge on the behavior of ATF concepts beyond this early phase of an accident, into more severe conditions leading to fuel degradation, is more limited. While there are experimental programs currently acquiring some relevant data (e.g., the OECD/NEA QUENCH-ATF program [13], the current understanding remains limited by the sparsity of data relevant to phases of the accident at onset or with progressive fuel degradation. The following initiatives represent areas for knowledge advancement to enhance the modeling realism for source term analysis with Cr-coated fuel.…”