On the black oxide colour of zirconium alloys

Artikel i vetenskaplig tidskrift, 2010

Tubes of four zirconium alloys, used as cladding materials in light water nuclear reactors, were oxidized in an autoclave to produce oxide layers 1, 2 and 9 μm thick. The reflectance of the tubes was measured using a UV-vis-NIR spectrophotometer equipped with an integrating sphere detector. The 1 and 2 μm oxide tubes had a black appearance and a reflectance of only 10-12% in the visible region, whereas a dark grey appearing 9 μm oxide tube had 13-17% reflectance. The low reflectance was interpreted in terms of localized surface plasmon resonance in metallic particles embedded in the oxide layer, having a mean size of 40-70 nm. © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.