Effect of Neutron Radiation on Moment-Curvature Response of Reinforced Concrete Beam

Reinforced concrete (RC) is a composite material in which concrete resists compression and steel bars as reinforcement are embedded in tensile regions to counteract the concrete's relative low tensile strength and ductility. RC is commonly used as a biological shield and as a load carrying support for a reactor vessel and, if any, changes in the mechanical properties can be particular significant for long-term irradiation. The highlights can be considered as the most critical due to its load bearing in the RC design. This study investigated the moment-curvature response of an RC beam with incremental neutron radiation. The RC structure close to the reactor vessel was considered as the most critical in estimating that the total fluence for 40 years becomes about 10¹⁴ to 10¹⁸ n/cm². The moment-curvature response of an RC beam was investigated with the maximum neutron fluence up to 10¹⁹ n/cm² and it shows twice the increase in ultimate strength, which is mainly contributed from the increased yield stress of mild steel. The RC beam response became so brittle that it may fail without large deformation as a warning. The same observation can be equally applied to other RC designs such as the column, slab, and foundation