Currently, the Korean nuclear industry uses ZIRLO as material for nuclear fuel cladding(zirconium alloy). KEPCO Nuclear Fuel is in the process of developing a HANA alloy to enable domestic production of cladding. Cladding manufacture involves multistage heat treatments and pickling processes, the latter of which is vital for the removal of defects and impurities on the cladding surface. SMUT that forms on the cladding surface during such pickling process is a source of surface defects during heat treatment and post-treatment processes if not removed. This study analyzes ZIRLO, HANA-4, and HANA-6 alloy claddings to extensively study the SEM/EDS, XRD, and particle size characteristics of SMUT, which are second phase particles that are formed on the cladding surface during pickling processes. Using the analysis results, this study observes SMUT formation characteristics according to Nb concentration in Zr alloys during the washing process following the pickling process. In addition, this study observes SMUT removal characteristics on cladding surfaces according to concentrations of nitric acid and hydrofluoric acid in the acid solution.

Oxide-dispersion-strengthened (ODS) alloy has been developed to increase the mechanical strength of metallic materials; such an improvement can be realized by distributing fine oxide particles within the material matrix. In this study, the ODS layer was formed in the surface region of Zr-based alloy tubes by laser beam treatment. Two kinds of Zr-based alloys with different alloying elements and microstructures were used: KNF-M (recrystallized) and HANA-6 (partial recrystallized). To form the ODS layer, Y2O3-coated tubes were scanned by a laser beam, which induced penetration of Y2O3 particles into the substrates. The thickness of the ODS layer varied from 20 to 55 μm depending on the laser beam conditions. A heat affected zone developed below the ODS layer; its thickness was larger in the KNF-M alloy than in the HANA-6 alloy. The ring tensile strengths of the KNF-M and HANA-6 alloy samples increased more than two times and 20–50%, respectively. This procedure was effective to increase the strength while maintaining the ductility in the case of the HANA-6 alloy samples; however, an abrupt brittle facture was observed in the KNF-M alloy samples. It is considered that the initial microstructure of the materials affects the formation of ODS and the mechanical behavior.

The nuclear fuel cladding temperatures of the HANARO fuel test loop have been calculated by MARS code for the large break loss-of-coolant accidents. Conservative method was used for the analysis of the loss-of-coolant accidents. Consequently, the maximum peak cladding temperature was predicted as 1235K, which was lower than the design limit temperature (1477K) of nuclear fuels for the HANARO fuel test loop. This means that the cooling capability of the emergency cooling water system for the HANARO fuel test loop is sufficient for the large break loss-of-coolant accidents.

본 연구에서는 360˚C 물 및 360˚C, 70ppm LiOH 수용액 분위기의 static autoclave를 이용하여 새롭게 개발한 Zr 신합금 (Zr-0.4Nb-0.8Sn-xFeCrMn, Zr-0.2Nb-1.1Sn-xFeCrMn, Zr-1.0Nb-xFeCu) 의 부식 특성을 평가하였다. 합금의 미세구조를 광학현미경과 TEM을 이용하여 관찰하였고, 부식시험 중에 생성된 산화막은 SEM과 XRD를 이용하여 단면 및 결정구조를 조사하였다. 부식시험 결과, 3종의 합금 모두 360˚C 물 분위기보다 360˚C, 70ppm LiOH 수용액 분위기에서의 부식저항성이 감소하였으며 특히, High Nb 합금의 경우 급격한 가속 부식현상을 나타내었다. 합금원소 첨가량과 관련하여 Nb의 함량을 고용도 이내로 줄이고 Sn을 적절히 첨가한 조성의 합금이 Sn을 첨가하지 않고 고용도 이상의 Nb을 가진 합금보다 우수한 부식저항성을 나타내었다. 또한 최종열처리가 부식에 미치는 영향의 경우에, 완전재결정 조직의 합금이 부분재결정 조직을 가진 합금보다 부식저항성이 감소되었는데 이는 기지조직에서 석출하늘 제 2상의 크기 및 분포에 의한 영향으로 사료된다.

The effect of β-heat treatment on th microstructure, mechanical properties and texture in the nuclear fuel cladding of Zircaloy-4 tubes was chosen at 1000, 1100 and 1200˚C, and the tubes were heat-treated by a high frequency vacuum induction furnace. Morphology of the second phase particles and α-grain of as-received tubes were markedly changed by heat treatment. The average sizes of second phase particles of as-received and β-heat treated tubes were 0.1μm and 0.076μm, respectively. However, the average sizes of second phase particles were not much changed in the β-heated temperatures. With increasing heat treatment temperatures, the 0.2% yield strength and the hoop strength were decreased because of changes in preferred orientation as will as α-plate width. Heat treated Zircaloy-4 tubes exhibited texture changes but the preferred orientation of grains still remained.

Zr합금에서 V, Sb의 함랗 변화가 Zr 합금의 부식 특성에 미치는 영향을 조사하기 위해 V, Sb함량을 각각 0.1, 0.2, 0.4wt.% 변화시킨 6종의 합금을 제조하고 360˚C 물 분위기에서 100일 동안 부식실험을 수행하였다. V이 0.2, 0.4wt% 첨가시편에서는 부식 속도의 천이 현상이 관찰되지 않았으나 0.1wt.% V 첨가 시편의 경우 10일 이후부터 무게증가량이 급격히 증가하는 부식 속도 가속 현상이 발생하였다. V 첨가량이 증가할수록 내식성이 증가하였으며 0.4wt.%V 첨가 합금이 가장 우수한 내식성을 보였다. Sb가 첨가된 삼원계 합금에서는 0.1, 0.4wt.%Sb 첨가 시편의 경우 초기부터 급격히 부식이 가속되는 현상이 발생하였으며 Sb 첨가량이 증가할수록 무게증가량이 감소하다가 다시 증가하여 0.2wt.% Sb 첨가에서 최소 무게증가량을 보였다. V, Sb함량이 증가할수록 석출물의 크기와 석출물의 부피 분율이 증가하는 경향을 보였으며 석출물의 크기가 0.11-0.13μm의 석출물 크기를 가질 때 가장 우수한 내식성을 보였다. 부식특성과 석출물 크기와의 관계로부터 적절한 크기의 석출물은 음극반응에서 전자의 전도를 제어하고 안정한 산화막 미세구조를 유지하는데 중요한 역할을 한다고 사료된다.

여러 가지 Zr합금에서 생성되는 석출물의 특성을 규명하기 위하여 시편을 600˚C에서 1시간 동안 열처리 한후 EDX가 부착된 TEM을 이용하여 석출물에 관한 연구를 수행하였다. Zr1.4Sn0.2Fe0.1Cr 합금에서는 두 종류의 석출물이 생성되는데 하나는 석출물의 대부분을 차지하는 HCP 구조으 Zr(Cr, Fe)2 석출물로서 이는 둥근 형태를 유지하며 결정립내나 결정립계에 관계없이 널리 분산되어 분포된다. 다른 하나의 석출물은 극히 일부에서만 관찰되는 Zr2(Fe, Si)성분의 석출물로서 이는 tetragonal 구조를 갖는다. Zr0.5Nb0.6Fe0.3V 합금에서는 tetragonal (Zr, Nb)2(Fe, V) 석출물이 형성되며, Nb이 1.0 wt.% 첨가된 Zr1.0Nb0.6Fe0.3V 합금에서는 HCP 구조의 (Zr, Nb)(Fe, V)2 석출물과 BCC 구조인 β-Zr이 생성된다. Zr1.0Nb0.6Fe0.3V합금을 제외하고는 대부분의 합금에서 석출물은 약 1.0μm의 크기를 나타냈다. 합금 조성이 다를 경우에 석출물 크기와 350˚C 부식 특성과는 부식 특성과는 연관성이 없는 것로 나타났다.

LiOH-H3BO3 용액중에서의 Zircaloy-4 핵연료 피복관의 부식가속과 억제현상을 조사하고 이러한 부식특성에 미치는 Li 및 B의 영향을 해석하기 위하여, 여러 조건의 LiOH-H3BO3</TEX> 용액을 사용하여 350˚C, 165bar의 고온, 고압 조건에서 Zircaloy-4 피복관의 노외 부식시험을 수행하였다. 원전 수화학 모의조건에 대응되는 용액 중에서의 부식속도의 천이는 물 분위기에서 보다 빨리 발생되고 천이후 물 분위기와 거의 유사한 부식속도를 나타내는 천이적 후의 부식거동을 보였다. 한편 pH의 변화는 부식특성에 큰 영향을 미치지 않았다. 부식가속과 억제 모의실험으로부터, 산화막내로 침투하는 Li의 양이 용액중 Li 농도에 크게 의존하며, Li 농도가 일정하게 정해진 용액의 경우 B 첨가에 관계없이 산화막내에 일정량의 Li이 농축될수 있다는 가정을 제시하였다. 또한 B 첨가에 의한 부식억제가 B 또는 B-(OH) 화합물의 산화막내 Li 침투 억제에 의한 것이 아니라 일들에 의해 산화막내로 산화성 성분의 이동이 억제되는데 기인할 수 있음을 제시하였다. 부식가속 개시점에 대응되는 산화막 두께측정 결과와 용액내 Li 농도간의 관계로부터, 용액중 Li 농도가 높을수록 부식가속이 얇은 산화막 두께에서 시작됨을 알았다. 특히 노내조건에서의 핵연료 피복관의 부식가속이 산화막내 Li 농축에 의해 일어나는 부식특성으로 해석될 수 있음을 보였다.

국산 핵연료에 사용되는 KOFA Zircaloy-4피복관의 조사성장 거동을 평가하고 제조 공정이 서로 다른 Siemens사 피복관의 조사성장거동과 비교하기 위하여 고리 2호기에 장전된 핵연료 피복관의 조사성장이 측정되었다. KOFA Zircaloy-4피복관은 최종 열처리시의 부분 재결정화로 인하여 fully annealed Zircaloy피복관고 Siemens사 피복관의 측정된 조사성장율이 차이는 제조공정의 차이에 기인한 피복관 집합도 계수의 차이로서 설명할 수 있었다. 고리 2호기 국산핵연료에서 측정된 자료를 이용하여 KOFA Zircaloy-4 피복관의 2단계 조사성장 모델이 유도되었는데 향후 측정자료가 많이 축적되면 유도된 모델의 정확성이 보다 명확하게 검증될 수 있을 것이다.

Hydride analysis is required to assess the mechanical integrity of spent nuclear fuel cladding. Image segmentation, which is a hydride analysis method, is a technique that can analyze the orientation and distribution of hydrides in cladding images of spent nuclear fuels. However, the segmentation results varied according to the image preprocessing. Inaccurate segmentation results can make hydride difficult to analyze. This study aims to analyze the segmentation performance of the Otsu algorithm according to the morphological operations of cladding images. Morphological operations were applied to four different cladding images, and segmentation performance was quantitatively compared using a histogram, betweenclass variance, and radial hydride fraction. As a result, this study found that morphological operations can induce errors in cladding images and that appropriate combinations of morphological operations can maximize segmentation performance. This study emphasizes the importance of image preprocessing methods, suggesting that they can enhance the accuracy of hydride analysis. These findings are expected to contribute to the advancements in integrity assessment of spent nuclear fuel cladding.

Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) has been operating the Post Irradiation Examination Facility (PIEF). The facility has many PIE equipment and one of them is a hydrogen analyzer for measuring hydrogen contents in Zr cladding of spent fuel. The cladding tube of fuel is oxidized in the core environment of high temperature and pressure and absorbs some of the hydrogen generated during the oxidation. The hydrogen content increases with the increase of burn-up, and causes hydriding of the material, which degrades the mechanical properties. Therefore, hydrogen content analysis of the cladding tube is required for the performance and integrity evaluation of spent fuel. In PIEF, the hydrogen analyzer extracts hydrogen gas from Zr cladding by the hot extraction method. The hydrogen gas flows with inert gas and oxidizes to H2O through a CuO reagent. Finally, an IR detector measures the hydrogen amount from the absorbed IR intensity at a specific wavelength. Because the equipment is in the glove box and has some consumable parts, the maintenance work was performed as a radiation work.

The thermal integrity of spent nuclear fuels has to be maintained during their long-term dry storage. The detailed temperature distributions of spent fuel assemblies are essential for evaluating the integrity of their dry storage systems. In this study, a subchannel analysis model was developed for a canister of a single fuel assembly using the COBRA-SFS code. The thermal parameters affecting the peak cladding temperature (PCT) of the spent fuel assembly were identified, and sensitivity analyses were performed based on these parameters. The subchannel analysis results indicated the presence of a recirculation flow, based on natural convection, between the fuel assembly and downcomer region. The sensitivity analysis of the thermal parameters indicated that the PCT was affected by the emissivity of the fuel cladding and basket, convective heat transfer coefficient, and thermal conductivity of the fluid. However, the effects of the wall friction factor of the canister, form loss coefficient of the grid spacers, and thermal conductivities of the solid materials, on the PCT were predominantly ignored.

This paper aims to evaluate the mechanical integrity for Spent Nuclear Fuel (SNF) cladding under lateral loads during transportation. The evaluation process requires a conservative consideration of the degradation conditions of SNF cladding, especially the hydride effect, which reduces the ductility of the cladding. The dynamic forces occurring during the drop event are pinch force, axial force and bending moment. Among those forces, axial force and bending moment can induce transverse tearing of cladding. Our assessment of 14 × 14 PWR SNF was performed using finite element analysis considering SNF characteristics. We also considered the probabilistic procedures with a Monte Carlo method and a reliability evaluation. The evaluation results revealed that there was no probability of damage under normal conditions, and that under accident conditions the probability was small for transverse failure mode.

This study developed an analytical methodology for the mechanical integrity of spent nuclear fuel (SNF) cladding tubes under external pinch loads during transportation, with reference to the failure mode specified in the relevant guidelines. Special consideration was given to the degraded characteristics of SNF during dry storage, including oxide and hydride contents and orientations. The developed framework reflected a composite cladding model of elastic and plastic analysis approaches and correlation equations related to the mechanical parameters. The established models were employed for modeling the finite elements by coding their physical behaviors. A mechanical integrity evaluation of 14 × 14 PWR SNF was performed using this system. To ensure that the damage criteria met the applicable legal requirements, stress-strain analysis results were separated into elastic and plastic regions with the concept of strain energy, considering both normal and hypothetical accident conditions. Probabilistic procedures using Monte Carlo simulations and reliability evaluations were included. The evaluation results showed no probability of damage under the normal conditions, whereas there were small but considerably low probabilities under accident conditions. These results indicate that the proposed approach is a reliable predictor of SNF mechanical integrity.