Thermo-mechanical behavior of Zircaloy-4 claddings under simulated post-DNB conditions

T. Jailin (1, 2) , Nicolas Tardif (1) , J. Desquines (2) , P. Chaudet (1) , Michel Coret (3) , M.-C. Baietto (1) , V. Georgenthum (2)

1 LaMCoS - Laboratoire de Mécanique des Contacts et des Structures [Villeurbanne]
2 IRSN/PSN-RES/SEREX/LE2M - Laboratoire d'Expérimentation en Mécanique et Matériaux
3 GeM - Institut de Recherche en Génie Civil et Mécanique

The thermo-mechanical behavior of Zircaloy-4 claddings under simulated post-DNB RIA conditions was investigated. Around twenty experiments were performed in simulated post-DNB conditions, i.e. creep ballooning tests with heating rates greater than 1000°C/s. Two different levels of pressure of 7 and 11 bar were tested for temperatures of interest ranging from 840°C to 1020°C. A complex creep behavior was highlighted in this range of temperature. It appears very well correlated to the phase content present within the material during fast thermal transients. Tests with low thermal transients were also performed and evidence a strong impact of the heating rate on the thermo-mechanical properties of the claddings.

Mots clés: Fast thermal transients; Full-field measurements; Creep; Zircaloy-4; RIA

Domaines: Matériaux et structures en mécanique [physics.class-ph]

T. Jailin, Nicolas Tardif, J. Desquines, P. Chaudet, Michel Coret, et al.. Thermo-mechanical behavior of Zircaloy-4 claddings under simulated post-DNB conditions. Journal of Nuclear Materials, 2020, pp.151984. ⟨10.1016/j.jnucmat.2020.151984⟩. ⟨hal-02437246v2⟩