Evaluation of fracture resistance of ruptured, oxidized, and quenched Zircaloy cladding by four-point-bend tests

Yamato, Masaaki; Nagase, Fumihisa ; Amaya, Masaki  

To evaluate fracture resistance of LWR fuel rods under LOCA and post-LOCA cooling conditions, four-point-bend tests were performed on non-irradiated Zircaloy cladding samples that were ruptured, oxidized in high-temperature steam, and quenched in flooding water. The bend test methodology was designed to apply a uniform bending moment to the entire rupture region and to generate tensile stress on the ruptured side. The fracture bending moment of the cladding decreased with oxidation temperature and hydrogen concentration as well as oxidation amount. Comparison with bending moments estimated from design basis seismic ground motion indicated that the cladding is unlikely to be fractured by seismic loads during post-LOCA cooling if high-temperature oxidation is kept below 15% ECR, the oxidation limit of the Japanese LOCA criteria.