Evolution of B2 and laves phases in a ferritic steel under Fe²⁺ ion irradiation at 475 °C

Microstructural evolution in a novel ferritic steel (Fe–12Cr–3W–3Ni–3Al–1Nb, in wt.%) computationally designed to contain B2 and Laves phases after 4 MeV Fe²⁺ ion irradiation up to 220 dpa at 475 °C was characterized using transmission electron microscopy in conjunction with x-ray energy dispersive spectroscopy. The ferritic matrix phase exhibited dislocation loops and tangled dislocations, but our focus was on stability of two types of intermetallic precipitates. The B2–NiAl precipitates ∼13 nm in size remained crystalline and appeared to have slightly lower Al concentration after irradiation. The Laves phase, (Fe,Cr)₂(Nb,W), were present in two size ranges: coarse micron-scale precipitates which were amorphized with a slight composition change at irradiation doses above ∼ 30 dpa, while the finer precipitate particles ∼ 100 nm in size were partially disintegrated with a noticeable composition change at doses above ∼ 70 dpa. Meanwhile, many Nb/Cr-enriched particles ∼8 nm in size formed within a few hundreds of nanometers from the disintegrated particles. The understanding of the phase stability would help design advanced steels and engineer microstructures that are stable against high irradiation doses, while retaining good high temperature strength.