Development of a Mechanistic Hydride Behavior Model for Spent Fuel Cladding Storage and Transportation

Researchers will develop a macroscale modeling capability that can assess the impact of hydride behavior on cladding integrity in commercial spent nuclear fuel during pool storage, drying, transportation, and long-term dry cask storage. To develop this capability, the team will investigate both experimentally and with computational modeling the hydride behavior relative to three critical phenomena in various zirconium alloy cladding materials: 1) Migration and redistribution of hydrogen; 2) Precipitation and dissolution of hydride particles; 3) The impact of hydride microstructure on mechanical properties of the cladding.