Zirconium alloys are widely used in nuclear reactors due to their good nuclear and mechanical properties. Zirconium cladding materials are high consumables. Zirconium alloys have small thermal neutron absorption area, high thermal conductivity, good mechanical properties, and have enough thermal strength and corrosion resistance. They are widely used as jacket materials, core materials, deceleration shielding materials for water-cooled power reactors. As the core component of the fuel element, the jacketing material is the first line of defense against nuclear leakage. Under irradiation, the consumption rate is high and 1/3 zirconium needs to be replaced every 12-18 months. At present, the total nuclear power capacity in the world is 391,000 mw, and it is estimated that 0.3 tons of core-grade zirconium sponge zirconium is needed to renew zirconium alloy every year for every 10 mw capacity, and a total of 12,000 tons of sponge zirconium is needed. Since the design life of nuclear power is generally more than 60 years, the demand for zirconium renewal will increase steadily with the long-term construction of nuclear power.
The domestic nuclear power industry has a large space for improvement, and intensive investment and construction will drive the development of the industry. Starting from 2020, the market of 709 million nuclear-grade sponge zirconium will be driven.