Abstract
A nanostructured ferritic alloy was irradiated with He+ to simulate service in a nuclear reactor and to test the hypothesis that the surface of nanoclusters is a preferential nucleation site for He bubbles. Transmission electron microscopy and atom probe tomography showed direct evidence of He bubble nucleation on the surfaces of nanoclusters and Ti(N,C) precipitates, and along grain boundaries and dislocations, thereby demonstrating an alloy design approach to improve the radiation tolerance of structural steels in the extreme environments found in nuclear reactors.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 731-734 |
| Number of pages | 4 |
| Journal | Scripta Materialia |
| Volume | 65 |
| Issue number | 8 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Oct 2011 |
Funding
This research was sponsored by the Materials Sciences and Engineering Division, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, US Department of Energy. The microscopy was supported by ORNL’s Shared Research Equipment (SHaRE) User Facility, which is sponsored by the Scientific User Facilities Division, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, US Department of Energy.
Keywords
- Atom probe tomography
- Helium irradiation
- Nanostructured ferritic alloys
- Radiation tolerance
- Transmission electron microscopy