Abstract
Concrete aggregate identified as “meta-chert” was irradiated with gamma-rays and neutrons. To identify the volume expansion of the aggregate under neutron irradiation, the following analyses were performed for pristine and irradiated α-quartz and meta-chert: X-ray diffraction (XRD)/Rietveld analysis, dimension change, water pycnometry, He-pycnometry, light optical microscopy (LOM), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). From the difference of volume expansion observed from dimension change and water/helium pycnometry, the crack opening inside the aggregate subjected to irradiation was elucidated, and this was confirmed by LOM and SEM analysis. The crack contribution to the expansion of the aggregate was significant for neutron fluence > 6.99 × 1019 n/cm2, for E ≥ 0.01 MeV. Based on the XRD analysis, changes in lattice parameters were identified and the cell volume expansion was compared with the data obtained by helium pycnometry. Based on the density change calculation and phase calculation data, the density of X-ray amorphous phase was consistent with that of expanded crystal α-quartz.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 760-776 |
| Number of pages | 17 |
| Journal | Journal of Advanced Concrete Technology |
| Volume | 20 |
| Issue number | 12 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Dec 2022 |
Funding
This manuscript has been co-authored by UT-Battelle, LLC, under contract DE-AC05-00OR22725 with the US Department of Energy (DOE). The publisher acknowledges the US government license to provide public access under the DOE Public Access Plan (hxxp://energy.gov/downloads/doe-public-access-plan). This work was partially supported by the Japanese Concrete Aging Management Program on Irradiation Effects (JCAMP), funded by the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry, Japan. The specimen was succeeded from the project “Advanced aging management technical evaluation of concrete structures in nuclear power plants,” funded by the Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA, Japan). The work on the post-neutron irradiated samples, except for He-pycnometry and associated mass measurements, has been realized with the institutional support of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic. He-pycnometry and associated mass measurements were sponsored by the US Department of Energy's (DOE's) Office of Nuclear Energy's Light Water Reactor Sustainability program under contract DE-AC05-00OR22725 with UT Battelle LLC/Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and by the US Department of Energy's (DOE's) Office of Nuclear Energy under the DOE Idaho Operations Office Contract DE-AC07-051D14517 as part of a Nuclear Science User Facilities experiment. This work was partially supported by the Japanese Concrete Aging Management Program on Irradiation Effects (JCAMP), funded by the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry, Japan. The specimen was succeeded from the project “Advanced aging management technical evaluation of concrete structures in nuclear power plants,” funded by the Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA, Japan). The work on the post-neutron irradiated samples, except for He-pycnometry and associated mass measurements, has been realized with the institutional support of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic. He-pycnometry and associated mass measurements were sponsored by the US Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Office of Nuclear Energy’s Light Water Reactor Sustainability program under contract DE-AC05-00OR22725 with UT Battelle LLC/Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and by the US Department of Energy's (DOE's) Office of Nuclear Energy under the DOE Idaho Operations Office Contract DE-AC07-051D14517 as part of a Nuclear Science User Facilities experiment. This manuscript has been co-authored by UT-Battelle, LLC, under contract DE-AC05-00OR22725 with the US Department of Energy (DOE). The publisher acknowledges the US government license to provide public access under the DOE Public Access Plan (hxxp://energy.gov/downloads/doe-public-access-plan).
| Funders | Funder number |
|---|---|
| DOE Public Access Plan | |
| U.S. Department of Energy | DE-AC05-00OR22725 |
| Office of Nuclear Energy | DE-AC07-051D14517 |
| Oak Ridge National Laboratory | |
| Nuclear Regulation Authority | |
| Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry | |
| Ministerstvo Průmyslu a Obchodu |