Zirconium alloy is the cladding material of fuel element, which has good corrosion resistance and creep resistance. At present, most of the zirconium used in nuclear power plants in China are dependent on imports, or spend a lot of money to buy patents and production processes from abroad. A 1, 000-megawatt plant needs 20 tonnes of zirconium for its first nuclear fuel, which is replaced every 12 to 18 months. In order to meet the huge demand and break the foreign technology monopoly, the comprehensive localization of zirconium alloy with its own brand is imminent.
Led by academician zhou bangxin, the laboratory of fundamental research on key materials for nuclear reactors in the institute of materials, Shanghai university, studied the problems of zirconium alloy in the service of nuclear power plants, and understood the law and mechanism of the changes, which laid a theoretical and practical foundation for the early large-scale application of "made in China" zirconium alloy. The "critical basic research on zirconium alloy" project, which was undertaken by China nuclear power research and design institute and mainly participated by Shanghai university, and led by academician zhou bangxin of Shanghai university as the chief scientist and a member of the project expert group, also won the second prize of national science and technology progress award in 2012.