Characterisation of creep cavitation due to creep-fatigue interaction

Grain boundary cavitation is the life-limiting creep damage process for long-term operating power plants exposed to high temperatures. Nuclear power plants are used extensively as base load sources of electricity as this is the technically simplest mode of operation. However, for countries including the UK with a desire to increase renewable energy sources to create energy mix, question arises as to whether the nuclear power plants can be operated in a load-following mode. This research is aimed to provide necessary experimental validation to a newly developed creep cavitation model that can be then used to support the life prediction of nuclear power plants operating in a load-following mode on a regular basis.