Development of Advanced Structural Materials for Future Nuclear Systems in Korea

Korea has put in a huge effort to develop the future nuclear systems such as a sodium-cooled fast reactor (SFR), a very high temperature reactor (VHTR) and fusion reactor. As the realization of such nuclear systems relies heavily on performance of materials, Korea has made steady and persistent effort to develop structural materials that can withstand the extremely harsh operating conditions. The present paper summarizes the current status of the Korean R&D activities on advanced nuclear materials including oxide dispersion strengthened (ODS) steels, Ni- base alloys and their ODS variations, reduced-activation ferritic-martensitic (RAFM) steels, and SiC composites.