[en] The GAPCON-THERMAL-3 computer code is an outgrowth of the GAPCON series, written in response to a need to predict the interacting path-dependent thermal and mechanical behavior of oxide fuel rods. Previous GAPCON versions did not include a comprehensive path-dependent prediction of cladding stress and strain that was connected to the thermal history. GAPCON-THERMAL-3 includes an incremental, finite element solution for the cladding that includes elastic, plastic, and creep contributions. The stress-strain increments for each time step reflect the thermal-mechanical state of the fuel at that time, so that the evolution of fuel and cladding displacements and temperatures through time is truly interconnected and path dependent