Corrosion of fuel rod claddings made of E110 alloy in reactors of nuclear icebreakers and small nuclear power plants

Abstract

E110 zirconium alloy is widely used as a cladding for fuel rods in the core of transport reactors, in particular, nuclear icebreakers. The corrosion of these claddings in the conditions of the icebreaker core tends to convert from uniform to pitting. Operational and post-reactor studies show that the performance of fuel rods with E110 zirconium alloy claddings may be limited due to the development of pitting corrosion. The paper provides assumptions aimed at explaining corrosion mechanisms in the core of nuclear icebreakers.