Kerntechnische Entsorgung
Filtern
Dokumenttyp
Schlagworte
- Ageing (31)
- Transport (25)
- Drop test (20)
- Ring Compression Test (20)
- Spent Nuclear Fuel (20)
- Monitoring (19)
- IAEA (18)
- SealWasteSafe (18)
- Cladding Embrittlement (17)
- Metal seal (17)
Organisationseinheit der BAM
- 3 Gefahrgutumschließungen; Energiespeicher (309)
- 3.3 Sicherheit von Transportbehältern (161)
- 3.4 Sicherheit von Lagerbehältern (151)
- 8 Zerstörungsfreie Prüfung (92)
- 8.2 Zerstörungsfreie Prüfmethoden für das Bauwesen (60)
- 7 Bauwerkssicherheit (23)
- 9 Komponentensicherheit (21)
- 8.6 Faseroptische Sensorik (13)
- 9.6 Additive Fertigung metallischer Komponenten (13)
- 7.2 Ingenieurbau (12)
Paper des Monats
- ja (3)
Brittle Failure Limits of Spent Fuel Claddings Subjected to Long-Term Dry Interim Storage Conditions
(2024)
The mechanical properties of spent fuel claddings can be adversely affected under the conditions of long-term dry interim storage, so that the failure limits may be reached in case of mechanical loads during handling or transport after storage. Pre-storage drying and the early stage of interim storage can expose the cladding to higher temperatures and higher tensile hoop stresses than those associated with in-reactor operation and pool storage. During slow cooling of a cladding tube under internal pressure, radial hydrides may precipitate in zirconium-based cladding alloys. This can lead to embrittlement of the material and sudden failure of the cladding integrity under mechanical stress. In order to prevent brittle failure, numerical methods are being developed to predict the mechanical behaviour and identify limiting conditions. Experimental investigations, numerical analyses and evaluation methods are discussed.
An established experimental method for characterising cladding materials is the Ring Compression Test (RCT). Some test results on irradiated cladding tubes after operation in pressure water reactors are publicly available. However, it is helpful to carry out studies on unirradiated surrogate claddings with similar material properties to reduce the effort associated with irradiated samples in hot cells and to perform material tests with a wider range of parameters. On the basis of such experimental data, load-displacement curves have been numerically analysed for a selection of cladding materials.
Radial hydrides can cause a sample to break suddenly due to fracture even at low deformation. Noticeable load drops in the RCT are caused by unstable crack propagation through the radial hydride network. The failure mechanism is quasi-cleavage in the hydrides and micro-void nucleation, growth, and coalescence in the zirconium matrix, with ductile tearing patches connecting adjacent hydrides. The cohesive zone approach was used to simulate the failure process taking into account the radial hydride morphology.
The developed method can adequately describe both the deformation and failure behaviour of irradiated as well as unirradiated claddings of zirconium-based alloys with radial hydrides under RCT conditions. Limiting conditions can be expressed in terms of fracture energy and cohesive strength.
The evaluation of cladding integrity is a major issue to be demonstrated in Germany for extended interim storage periods up to 100 years and subsequent transportation considering operational and accidental conditions with respect to reactor operation, cask drying and dry interim storage. The chemical reaction between the zirconium fuel cladding and the cooling water in water-cooled reactors produces hydrogen and zirconium oxide. Hydrogen diffuses into the cladding and precipitates as zirconium hydrides when the solubility limit is reached, preferably oriented in hoop direction. At high temperatures during vacuum drying procedures, the hydrides can dissolve. Over a succeeding period of slow cooling with existing hoop stress the hydrides precipitate again, but partly reoriented along the radial direction of the cladding. This change of microstructure in combination with a decreasing temperature (0.5...2 K/year) during (extended) interim storage and additional mechanical load by handling procedures or under accident conditions could lead to a potential cladding embrittlement and consequently increased failure probability. The current research project BRUZL (Fracture mechanical analysis of spent fuel claddings under long-term dry interim storage conditions) has been launched by BAM to investigate potential sudden brittle failure of spent fuel claddings at small deformation under long-term dry interim storage conditions and is presented.
Es werden Methoden zur sicherheitstechnischen Bewertung des mechanischen Verhaltens von Brennstabhüllrohren entwickelt, um sprödes Versagen in Belastungsszenarien nach längerfristiger trockener Zwischenlagerung zu verhindern. Unbestrahlte Brennstabhüllrohrsegmente aus der Zirkoniumlegierung ZIRLO® wurden hydriert und thermomechanischen Behandlungen unterzogen, um Hüllrohrmaterial durch Ausscheidung radialer Hydride zu verspröden. Die Proben mit radialen Hydriden wurden im Ring Compression Test (RCT) bei Raumtemperatur untersucht. Bereits bei kleinen Probenverformungen wurden abrupte Kraftabfälle mit instabiler Rissausbreitung durch das Netzwerk radialer Hydride beobachtet. Die Risslängen erreichten in einigen Fällen bis zu 90 % der Wanddicke. Der mikromechanische Versagensmechanismus ist Quasi-Spaltbruch in den Hydriden und Porenbildung, -wachstum und -vereinigung in der Zirkoniummatrix an den duktilen Brücken zwischen benachbarten Hydriden. Es wurde ein Finite-Elemente-Modell des Ring Compression Tests erstellt, um das Versagensverhalten zirkoniumbasierter Legierungen mit radialen Hydriden im RCT zu analysieren. Die Fließkurve für das elastisch-plastische Materialmodell des Matrixmaterials wurde durch eine inverse Finite-Elemente-Analyse ermittelt. Kohäsivzonenmodelle wurden benutzt, um die plötzlichen Kraftabfälle zu reproduzieren. Es wurde ein mikromechanisches Modell mit statistisch generierten Matrix-Hydrid-Verteilungen entwickelt, das zwischen sprödem Versagen entlang der Hydride und duktilem Versagen der Zirkoniummatrix in der Kohäsivzone unterscheidet. Für das jeweilige Materialverhalten wird ein lokales zweiparametriges Versagenskriterium auf Grundlage der Kohäsionsfestigkeit und der Separationsenergie bei einer festgelegten Form des Kohäsivgesetzes vorgeschlagen. Geeignete Kohäsivparameter lassen sich mit einer inversen Finite-Elemente-Analyse des Versagensverhaltens von hydrierten Proben im Ring Compression Test bestimmen. In den Simulationen lag der Schwerpunkt auf dem ersten Kraftabfall. Die Berechnungsergebnisse stimmen gut mit den RCT-Ergebnissen überein. Es konnte gezeigt werden, dass die Rissinitiierung und -ausbreitung stark von der speziellen Anordnung der radialen Hydride und Matrixbrücken in der Bruchzone abhängt. Die numerische Modellbildung wurde an Versuchen mit bestrahlten Proben aus der Zirkoniumlegierung M5® validiert.
The safety evaluation of cask components made of ductile cast iron includes investigations to prevent brittle fracture. Generally, ductile cast iron is endangered by brittle fracture especially at low temperatures (down to -40°C) and in combination with existing crack-like material defects. An applicable method is the assessment of fracture resistance using fracture mechanics according to the IAEA guidelines. The approach is based on the prevention of fracture initiation. For application of these principles for drop loads, account must be taken both of dynamic stresses within the component and dynamic material behavior. Basically, the dynamic stress intensity factor of postulated pre-existing crack-like defects is compared with the dynamic fracture toughness of the material. Applicable numerical and experimental methods for the safety assessment of cask components are demonstrated for the case of an artificially pre-cracked cylindrical cast iron cask which undergoes dynamic loading conditions as result of the hard impact between the cask and a concrete target. The proposed evaluation procedure is a combination of numerical and experimental steps. Exemplarily, the calculated stress intensity factor is compared with measured fracture toughness values from single edge notched bending specimens.
Long-term dry interim storage may adversely affect the mechanical properties of spent fuel rods, possibly resulting in a reduced resilience during handling or transport after storage. The cladding is the first barrier for the spent fuel pellets. An established method for characterising the cladding material is the ring compression test (RCT), in which a small, cylindrical sample of the cladding tube is subjected to a compressive load. Radial hydrides may precipitate in zirconium-based alloys (Zircaloy) under pre-storage drying and during slow cooling, which result in embrittlement of the cladding material and eventually a possible sudden failure of cladding integrity under additional mechanical loads. The focus of the presented research is on the development of appropriate nu-merical methods for predicting the mechanical behaviour and identification of limiting conditions to prevent brittle fracture of Zircaloy claddings. A modelling approach based on cohesive zones is ex-plained which is able to reproduce the propagation of cracks initiated at radial hydrides in the zir-conium matrix. The developed methods are applied to defueled samples of cladding alloy ZIRLO®, which were subjected to a thermo-mechanical treatment to reorient existing circumferential hy-drides to radial hydrides. A selected sample showing sudden load drops during a quasi-static ring compression test is analysed by means of fracture mechanics for illustrative purposes. Based on the developed fracture mechanics approach, not only the deformation behaviour but also the fail-ure behaviour of irradiated as well as unirradiated Zircaloy claddings with radial hydrides under RCT loading conditions can be adequately described.
The prevention of brittle fracture of spent fuel claddings during long-term dry interim storage is based on experimental investigations, numerical analyses and assessment methods for predicting the mechanical behavior and determining limiting conditions. The ring compression test (RCT) is an established experimental method for characterizing cladding material. Test results for various high-burnup pressure water reactor zirconium-based fuel cladding alloys (e.g., ZIRLO®, M5®) are publicly available. To reduce the effort associated with irradiated samples in hot cells, it is helpful to perform studies on unirradiated surrogate cladding material. Based on such experimental data, load-displacement curves were numerically analyzed for selected cladding materials. In the presence of radial hydrides, a sample may suddenly fail by fracture even at small deformations. Noticeable load drops in the RCT occur associated to unstable crack propagation through the radial hydride network. The failure mechanism is quasi-cleavage in the hydrides and micro-void nucleation, growth, and coalescence in the zirconium matrix, with ductile tearing patches connecting neighboring hydrides. The failure process was simulated by cohesive zones controlled by the fracture energy and the cohesive strength. A modeling approach is presented in which the radial hydride morphology is taken into account. Based on the developed fracture mechanics approach with cohesive zone modeling, not only the deformation behavior but also the failure behavior of irradiated as well as unirradiated claddings with radial hydrides under RCT loading conditions can be adequately described.
The report addresses the experimental characterisation, thermo-mechanical modelling and performance of unirradiated and irradiated samples of spent nuclear fuel rod segments and cladding. Hydrogen is relocated in nuclear fuel claddings by diffusion along temperature, stress, and concentration gradients, and towards a liner if existent. The precipitation of hydrides during cool-down at the beginning of the storage is influenced by mechanical stress. A strong accumulation of hydrides and a disadvantageous hydride alignment in relation to the stress state can affect the mechanical properties and compromise the fuel cladding integrity. Neutron radiography is used to determine spatially resolved hydrogen and hydride distributions in claddings. A liner in duplex claddings attracts hydrogen, which will then no longer be available to form detrimental hydrides in the bulk part of the cladding. Individual three-point bending and gravitational impact tests on filled pressurised spent nuclear fuel rod segments were conducted in hot-cell facilities. The material behaviour under three-point bending in the presence of hydrides and at different temperatures was systematically investigated in quasi-static laboratory tests on unirradiated rod segments with and without surrogate pellets until rupture. Ring compression tests were carried out on irradiated and unirradiated samples at different temperatures and both with and without radial hydrides. With radial hydrides, brittle failure is possible even at low deformation and simultaneously low temperature. Crack initiation will occur on the radial hydride with the highest fracture mechanics load, which depends on the hydride size in the regions with the highest hoop stresses. Due to the high hydrogen content used in creep tests conducted, precipitation hardening of the hydrides in the zirconium alloy significantly reduces the creep rate, as it strengthens the material and inhibits the dislocation sliding. The use of finite element analyses on mechanical tests to determine the cladding properties using a numerical optimisation method based on a large number of automatically generated sensitivity calculations is demonstrated. The brittle fracture of cladding samples with radial hydrides in the ring compression test can be described with a cohesive zone model if the cohesive parameters are selected appropriately and the hydride morphology is specified. Progress was made in the verification, validation and enhancement of spent fuel performance codes by the compilation of a representative validation database (related to rod internal pressure, fission gas release, rod void volume, and in-clad hydrogen distribution), the enhancement of CIEMAT’s FRAPCON-xt code for rod internal pressure prediction at high burnup, the enhancement of CIEMAT’s in-clad hydrogen performance subroutine HYDCLAD with more phenomenological modelling, the extension of INL’s BISON code with a cladding creep law for dry storage, and a benchmark with FRAPCON-xt and BISON simulating in-reactor and dry storage scenarios.
Embrittlement of spent fuel claddings during long-term dry interim storage - Current approach at BAM
(2019)
In this presentation, the actual situation of long-term dry interim storage of spent nuclear fuel in Germany is reported. An extension of the interim storage period between 40 and 100 years for at least a relevant number of casks is foreseeable. To demonstrate the integrity of fuel rods and cladding tubes throughout the extended dry interim storage, a potential cladding embrittlement should be investigated. The current approach at BAM is a research project on experimental and numerical investigations of sudden failure of unirradiated pre-hydrided cladding tubes after hydride reorientation at small deformation under Ring Compression Test conditions. A fracture mechanics based failure analysis and suggested failure criteria for a potential brittle failure of spent fuel claddings after long-term dry interim storage under mechanical loads are discussed.
The current research project BRUZL (Fracture mechanical analysis of spent fuel claddings during long-term dry interim storage) is presented. General aim of the project is the development of methods for risk assessment and identification of boundary conditions to prevent potential sudden brittle failure of spent fuel claddings at small deformation during long-term dry interim storage and subsequent transportation. The project is funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi) under contract no. 1501561.
The evaluation of cladding integrity is a major issue to be demonstrated in Germany for extended interim storage periods up to 100 years and subsequent transportation considering operational and accidental conditions with respect to reactor operation, cask drying and dry interim storage. The chemical reaction between the zirconium fuel cladding and the cooling water in water-cooled reactors produces hydrogen and zirconium oxide. Hydrogen diffuses into the cladding and precipitates as zirconium hydrides when the solubility limit is reached, preferably oriented in hoop direction. At high temperatures during vacuum drying procedures, the hydrides can dissolve. Over a succeeding period of slow cooling with existing hoop stress the hydrides precipitate again, but partly reoriented along the radial direction of the cladding. This change of microstructure in combination with a decreasing temperature (0.5...2 K/year) during (extended) interim storage and additional mechanical load by handling procedures or under accident conditions could lead to a potential cladding embrittlement and consequently increased failure probability. The current research project BRUZL (Fracture mechanical analysis of spent fuel claddings under long-term dry interim storage conditions) has been launched by BAM to investigate potential sudden brittle failure of spent fuel claddings at small deformation under long-term dry interim storage conditions and is presented.