NSUF 24-5166: In-situ TEM study of irradiation effects in zirconium oxides
Zirconium alloys have been widely used as fuel cladding materials in light water nuclear reactors (LWR). In service, the inner cladding surfaces are progressively oxidized by oxygen containing species from the fuel pellets. The oxide layers formed on the inner cladding surface can degrade the thermal and mechanical properties of fuel rods and limit their lifetime, so it is important to understand their evolution under irradiation in order to improve the modelling of rod behavior in the reactor. In this project, we propose the use of in situ transmission electron microscopy (TEM) to conduct real-time investigations into the microstructural changes in zirconium oxides at various dose levels (0.5, 1, 10, and 20 dpa) and temperatures, specifically at 20°C, 360°C and 600°C (approximating the inner cladding surface temperature). This study aims to collect reliable data on radiation damage behavior in zirconium oxides, which includes the formation of defect clusters and the phase transformation between tetragonal/cubic-ZrO2 and monoclinic-ZrO2 at elevated temperatures and under different doses.
Додаткова інформація
| Поле | Значення |
|---|---|
| Awarded Institution | University of Wisconsin-Madison |
| Embargo End Date | 2026-07-01 |
| Facility Tech Lead | Wei-Ying Chen |
| Irradiation Facilities | Intermediate Voltage Electron Microscopy (IVEM)-Tandem Facility |
| NSUF Call | FY 2024 RTE 3rd Call |
| PI | Junliang Liu |
| Project Member | Dr. Wei-Ying Chen, Material Scientist - Argonne National Laboratory (https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6583-4204) |
| Project Member | Professor Adrien Couet, Assistant Professor - University of Wisconsin (https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7330-5150) |
| Project Member | Dr Junliang Liu, Assistant Professor - Florida State University (https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9278-6463) |
| Project Type | RTE |