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Nuclear power currently provides about 13% of electrical power worldwide, and has emerged as a reliable baseload source of electricity. A number of materials challenges must be successfully resolved for nuclear energy to continue to make further improvements in reliability, safety and economics. The operating environment for materials in current and proposed future nuclear energy systems is summarized, along with a description of materials used for the main operating components. Materials challenges associated with power uprates and extensions of the operating lifetimes of reactors are described. The three major materials challenges for the current and next generation of water-cooled fission reactors are centered on two structural materials aging degradation issues (corrosion and stress corrosion cracking of structural materials and neutron-induced embrittlement of reactor pressure vessels), along with …