Characterization of Axial Cracking Morphology ...

Cladding fracture behavior is an important consideration, particularly in secondary damage of fuel cladding during service and during handling and storage of discharged fuel. Pin loading tension test is one of the most promising non-standard procedures with which quantification of initiation and propagation behavior of an axial crack of a thin-walled tubular specimen is possible. This paper focuses on characterisation of the fracture surface of a few different cladding tubes through a detailed fractographic examination and a relative comparison in crack resistance of the tubes in correlation with their fracture pattern.