Current trends towards extended burnup, increased outlet
temperatures and plant life extension in nuclear power facilities require
the solution of a large number of problems related to the reliability of
the materials used, especially in key components such as fuel cladding. In
particular, the corrosion of metals and alloys under irradiation poses
special problems for the nuclear industry. At present, the ability to
predict the long term behaviour of materials in a radiation environment is
rather limited due mainly to a lack of knowledge of detailed mechanisms.