Technique of Combined Estimation of the Embrittlement of E110 Zirconium Alloys under High-Temperature Oxidation Conditions

The embrittlement resistance of the claddings made of an E110 zirconium alloy of various degrees of purity under high-temperature oxidation conditions close to the LOCA conditions is estimated using a developed technique, which includes the determination of static fracture toughness, quantitative metallography, and electron-probe microanalysis. This technique demonstrates that the alloy based on a zirconium sponge has the best fracture toughness and the Zr–1% Nb–0.13% O–0.12% Fe alloy has the minimum fracture toughness.