Zirconium alloy heat treatment process

In the method or producing a boiling water reactor structural component of an alloy of zirconium substantially free of niobium and containing alloying components selected from the group consisting of tin, iron, chromium, nickel and oxygen, which method includes hot and cold working and annealing steps comprising a fabrication schedule, the combination of the steps of heating said structural component at a temperature and for a time sufficient for substantially completely transforming alpha phase to beta phase and dissolving substantially all intermetallic particles, cooling said structural component to about room temperature at a rate rapid enough to prevent intermetallic phase dissolved during the heating step from precipitating, subsequently heating said structural component to an intermediate temperature to cause precipitation of the intermetallic phase in the form of particles from about 100 to 400 Angstroms in diameter in two dimensional arrays along grain boundaries and sub-grain boundaries and retaining substantially all said intermetallic phase particles in said boundaries during any subsequent processing steps executed through and including installing said structural component in a boiling water reactor.