Experimental studies on the transport of silver and cesium fission products in SIC

To understand the release of Ag and Cs in SiC we have designed an integrated experimental and modeling program to understand the potential role of microstructure on fission product transport. We have encapsulated SiC/Ag and SiC/Cs diffusion couples in a molybdenum canister to ensure contact between the two diffusion couple elements and no Ag or Cs loss to the surrounding environment. The diffusion couples are exposed to temperatures spanning 800 to 1500°C for up to 1000 hrs to simulate normal and the onset of accident conditions. The relationship between the microstructure and diffusion will be understood by employing a variety of techniques such as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), electron backscattered detection (EBSD), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), Rutherford backscattering (RBS), and Raman spectroscopy to characterize morphology, grain boundary character distribution, chemical composition, and crystalline structure. In addition computer modeling is also being used to investigate the diffusion of silver through SiC, but will not be discussed in this paper. A multi-scale approach based on ab initio techniques, molecular dynamics, and continuum rate equations is being pursued to establish relationships between complex microstructures and diffusion rates. Initial work has begun on transport through bulk SiC and on building realistic models of grain boundaries in SiC.