Influence of humidity on the permittivity and conductivity of thin zirconium alloy oxide films

The relative permittivity of thin oxide layers on tubes used for nuclear fuel cells of zirconium alloyed with 1% niobium was observed to change reversibly up to 22% when measured with a permeable thin gold electrode, and the conductivity increased up to several hundredfold when exposed to saturated moist air in several minutes. The effect is believed to be produced by adsorbed water in the pores of the oxide layer.