| The influence of group-1 alkali hydroxides on different Zr-based alloys have been carried out in static autoclaves at 350℃ in pressurized water, conditioned in low(0.32 mmol), medium(4.3 mmol) and high(31.5 mmol) equimolar concentration of Li-, Na-, K-, Rb- and Cs-hydroxide. Two types of alloys have been investigated: Zr-Sn-(TRM, Transition metal) and Zr-Sn-Nb-(TRM, Transition metal). From the experiments the cation could be identified as the responsible species for corrosion of Zr alloy in alkalized water. The radius of the cation governs the accelerated corrosion in the pre-transition region of Zr alloy. Incorporation of alkali cation into the zirconium oxide lattice is probably the mechanism which allows the corrosion enhancement for Li and Na and the significant lower effect for the other bases. Nb containing alloys showed lower corrosion resistance than Zr-Sn-TRM alloys in all alkali solutions. Both types of alloys were corroded significantly more in LiOH and NaOH than in the other alkali environments. Lowest corrosive aggressiveness has been found for CsOH followed by KOH. Concluding from the corrosion behavior in the different alkali environments and taking into account the tendency to accelerate the corrosion of Zr alloys, CsOH and KOH are possible alternate alkali for PWR(Pressurized Water Reactor) application. |
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