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3D Visualisation of Crack Distributions in Oxidised Zirconium Alloys by FIB-Slicing

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Abstract

Zirconium alloys have been used as fuel cladding and structural fuel assembly components in nuclear reactors since the 1950s, and show a characteristic variation in oxidation rate and layered crack morphology during aqueous corrosion. It is common to associate the first phenomenon with the appearance of the second. We have used 3D serial sectioning to study the morphology and distribution of cracks in corroded ZIRLO samples at different stages of oxidation, and have shown that cracks nucleate and grow at all stages of the oxidation process not just at the kinetic transition. We have used this data to analyse the nucleation of cracks with reference to the shape of the oxide/metal interface and the distribution of second phase precipitates.

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Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge the contribution made by collaborators from EDF Energy, Rolls Royce, Westinghouse and Manchester University. This research was funded by the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council under grant EP/E036384/1.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Materials, Oxford University, Oxford, United Kingdom

    Chris R. M. Grovenor, Sean S. Yardley, Gareth Hughes, Sergio Lozano-Perez & John M. Sykes

  2. Department of Materials, Imperial College, London, United Kingdom

    Na Ni

Authors
  1. Chris R. M. Grovenor
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  2. Na Ni
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  3. Sean S. Yardley
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  4. Gareth Hughes
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  5. Sergio Lozano-Perez
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  6. John M. Sykes
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Grovenor, C.R.M., Ni, N., Yardley, S.S. et al. 3D Visualisation of Crack Distributions in Oxidised Zirconium Alloys by FIB-Slicing. MRS Online Proceedings Library 1421, 24–29 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1557/opl.2012.429

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1557/opl.2012.429

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