Habit plane of δ-hydride in α-zirconium: Atomistic simulations

C Dai and M Welland, JOURNAL OF NUCLEAR MATERIALS, 585, 154626 (2023).

DOI: 10.1016/j.jnucmat.2023.154626

The formation of Zr hydrides can result in degradation and cracking of Zr alloys. Previous studies have demonstrated that macroscopic hydrides consist of microscopic hydride platelets arranged in a stacking struc- ture. However, the stability of hydride platelets at the nanoscale has received relatively little attention. In this letter, we employ atomistic simulations to investigate the nano-scale hydrides. Our simulations predict that the 1017 plane exhibits the lowest value of hydride-induced stress, implying that this plane serves as the habit plane for the hydride. This finding aligns with experimental observations, providing valuable insights into the mechanism of hydride reorientation.

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