Abstract
The worldwide need for nuclear power plant (NPP) lifetime extension to meet future national energy requirements while reducing greenhouse gases raises the question of the condition of concrete structures exposed to ionizing radiation. Although research into the effects of radiation has a long history and the phenomenon of deterioration of concrete due to irradiation is not yet completely understood, the main assumed degradation mode is radiation-induced volumetric expansion of aggregates. There are experimental data on irradiated concrete obtained over decades under different conditions; however, the collection of data exhibits considerable scatter. Fuzzy logic modeling offers an effective tool that can interconnect various data sets obtained by different teams of experts under different conditions. The main goal of this work is to utilize available data on irradiated concrete components such as minerals and aggregates that expand upon irradiation. Furthermore, aggregate radiation-induced volumetric expansion gives an estimate of the change in mechanical properties of aggregate after years of reactor operation. The mechanical properties of irradiated aggregate can then be used for modeling irradiated concrete in the actual NPP structure based on the composition of concrete, the average temperature on the surface of the biological shield structure, and the neutron dose received by biological shield.
