Development of ODS ferritic steel cladding for the advanced fast reactor fuels

Oxide Dispersion Strengthened (ODS) ferritic steel has excellent welling resistance and improved high-temperature strength, which are important properties for the fast reactor fuel cladding tube. Japan Nuclear Cycle Development Institute (JNC) has developed a method for microstructure control to disperse nano-sized oxide particles in equiaxed crystal grain and succeeded in producing high performance ODS ferritic steel cladding. The ring tensile and internal creep rupture strengths of the manufactured ODS ferritic claddings exhibited excellent performance far beyond that of conventional ferritic-martensitic steel (PNC-FMS) and austenitic steel (PNC316). Adequate ductility in hoop direction was also maintained. The feasibility study was also conducted for economically manufacturing process with capable of large-scale production. In order to confirm and demonstrate the ODS fuel pin integrity to high burnup conditions, the irradiation test in BOR-60 has been conducted under the framework of JNC-Russia FBR cycle cooperation and the irradiation test in JOYO is under the planning stage. (author)