Zirconium Is Used As Cladding Material in Nuclear Reactors

Zirconium is used as cladding material in nuclear reactors

Compared with traditional metal elements such as iron, copper, and nickel, zirconium has a lower density and smaller thermal expansion coefficient.

In addition, zirconium also has a low thermal neutron absorption cross-sectional area (only 0.18*10-28㎡) and good internal corrosion properties, which makes zirconium and its alloys widely used in special fields such as the nuclear industry and aerospace. Application prospects. At present, zirconium and its alloys have been relatively maturely used as cladding materials in nuclear reactors.

Parts produced from it include fuel cladding tubes, control rod guide tubes, pressure tubes, original parts boxes and some structural materials. my country's large nuclear power plants generally use zirconium materials. If nuclear power is used to generate electricity, 20 to 25 tons of metallic zirconium will be consumed per year for every one million kilowatts of power generation capacity.

A 30,000-horsepower nuclear submarine uses zirconium and zirconium alloys as cladding and pressure tubes for nuclear fuel. The amount of zirconium used reaches 20 to 30 tons.