Abstract
Graphite grade ETU-10, from IBIDEN Co., Ltd. Has been irradiated in the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). The irradiation program was developed to provide a preliminary study the irradiation-induced property changes to the dimensions/volume, elastic properties, strength, electrical resistivity, coefficient of thermal expansion, and thermal diffusivity/conductivity over a range of temperatures and neutron exposures that may be relevant for future nuclear reactors. The irradiation envelope covers a range of irradiation temperatures (300°C–900 °C) and fluences (up to 40 × 1025 n/m2 [E > 0.1 MeV] or ∼30 dpa) that would be relevant for advanced nuclear reactors. The dimensional change was observed to be anisotropic for an isotropic graphite, the specimen dimensions, volume, Young's modulus, shear modulus, and strength all displayed a parabolic fluence dependence, the electrical resistivity had a rapid rise followed by a decrease and a later increase, at high fluence the mean coefficient of thermal expansions was similar for all irradiation temperatures, and thermal conductivity rapidly decreased followed by a continued loss.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | 120178 |
| Journal | Carbon |
| Volume | 238 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - May 5 2025 |
Funding
This research was performed at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and sponsored IBIDEN Co., Ltd. under the Material Science and Technology Division, Work-for-Others (WFO) Program, and DOE agreement: NFE-11-03389, with the U.S. Department of Energy. Publication of this research was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Nuclear Energy Advanced Reactor Technology Program. This program would not have been completed without the expertise and input from numerous persons throughout the laboratory. Special notice needs to be given to the staff of the LAMDA laboratory: Marie Williams, Patricia Tedder, Stephanie Curlin, Daniel Lewis, Michael McAlister, Bill Comings, Brian Eckhart, Jordan Couch, Felipe Mora, Ashli Clark, and Wallace Porter. This research was performed at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and sponsored IBIDEN Co. Ltd. under the Material Science and Technology Division, Work-for-Others (WFO) Program, and DOE agreement: NFE-11-03389, with the U.S. Department of Energy. Publication of this research was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Nuclear Energy Advanced Reactor Technology Program. A portion of this research used resources at the High Flux Isotope Reactor, a DOE Office of Science User Facility operated by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Oak Ridge National Laboratory is managed by UT-Battelle, LLC under Contract No. DE-AC05-00OR22725 for the U.S. Department of Energy. Oak Ridge National Laboratory is managed by UT-Battelle, LLC under Contract No. DE-AC05-00OR22725 for the U.S. Department of Energy.
Keywords
- Materials properties
- Neutron irradiation
- Nuclear graphite