Development of novel multi-element low-activation Fe-based alloys for nuclear and fusion reactor applications

IF 2.8 2区工程技术 Q3 MATERIALS SCIENCE, MULTIDISCIPLINARY

Journal of Nuclear Materials Pub Date : 2025-03-29 DOI:10.1016/j.jnucmat.2025.155772

Kazuyuki Furuya , Koichi Tsuchiya , Eiichi Wakai , Elango Chandiran , Bikash Tripathy , Masami Ando , Takaharu Kamada , Hiroyuki Noto

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Abstract

Microstructures, mechanical properties and irradiation hardening of novel multi-element iron-based alloys (Fe-(10 and 20)Mn-15Cr-2.0Al-0.7V-0.5C (at %)) were investigated. The alloys do not contain high activation elements, such as, Co, Ni and Mo. The alloy samples were hot-rolled at 1323 K and air-cooled, followed by heat treatment at 1073 K for 0.5 h and quenching in to water. After the heat-treatment, the Fe-10Mn-15Cr-2.0Al-0.7V-0.5C (10Mn) sample consisted mainly of body-centered cubic (BCC) structure with two distinct microstructures, i.e., fine lath-martensite-like structures and recrystallized grains. Meanwhile, the Fe-20Mn-15Cr-2.0Al-0.7V-0.5C (20Mn) sample were a mixture of fine lath-martensite like BCC phase and face-centered cubic (FCC) phases. The 10Mn sample exhibits very high tensile strength of 960 MPa but low elongation, while the 20Mn sample exhibits lower tensile strength of 620 MPa but much improved elongation over 60 %. The samples were simultaneously triple-irradiated with 10.5 MeV Fe³⁺ ions, 1.05 MeV He⁺ ions and 0.38 MeV H⁺ ions to a depth of 1 μm from the sample surface. The irradiation hardening in average was only about 1.5 GPa in the alloys irradiated with 10.5 MeV Fe³⁺ ions up to 30 dpa at 573 K at the damage peak, measured by nano-indentation. The irradiation hardening resistance of the alloys was better than that of other fusion structural materials and fission reactor pressure vessel steels. Combined analysis with electron-backscattered diffraction and nanoindentation revealed that the irradiation hardening is less significant in lath BCC phase than in recrystallized BCC (10Mn) and in FCC (20Mn). These results suggest that the alloys with good combination of irradiation resistance and mechanical properties can be developed by further tailoring the phase stability of the alloys and combining the high-entropy effects, aiming for the application for components in nuclear reactors, fusion reactors and high-power large accelerator facilities.

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核与聚变反应堆用新型多元素低活化铁基合金的研制

研究了新型多元素铁基合金Fe-(10和20)Mn-15Cr-2.0Al-0.7V-0.5C （at %）的显微组织、力学性能和辐照硬化。该合金不含Co、Ni、Mo等高活化元素。合金试样在1323 K下热轧后风冷，在1073 K下热处理0.5 h，然后在水中淬火。热处理后的Fe-10Mn-15Cr-2.0Al-0.7V-0.5C （10Mn）试样主要由体心立方（BCC）组织组成，具有细小的板条状马氏体组织和再结晶晶粒两种明显的组织。Fe-20Mn-15Cr-2.0Al-0.7V-0.5C （20Mn）试样为细板状马氏体BCC相和面心立方（FCC）相的混合物。10Mn样品的抗拉强度高达960 MPa，但伸长率较低；20Mn样品的抗拉强度较低，为620 MPa，但伸长率提高了60%以上。用10.5 MeV Fe3+离子、1.05 MeV He+离子和0.38 MeV H+离子对样品进行三次辐照，辐照深度为1 μm。采用纳米压痕法测定，当Fe3+离子浓度为10.5 MeV，温度为30 dpa，温度为573 K时，合金的辐照硬化平均仅为1.5 GPa左右。合金的抗辐照硬化性能优于其他核聚变结构材料和裂变反应堆压力容器钢。电子背散射衍射和纳米压痕分析表明，板条BCC相的辐照硬化程度低于再结晶BCC相（10Mn）和FCC相（20Mn）。这些结果表明，通过进一步调整合金的相稳定性，结合高熵效应，可以开发出具有良好耐辐照性能和力学性能相结合的合金，目标是在核反应堆、聚变反应堆和大功率大型加速器设施的部件中应用。

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来源期刊

Journal of Nuclear Materials 工程技术-材料科学：综合

CiteScore

5.70

自引率

25.80%

发文量

601

审稿时长

63 days

期刊介绍： The Journal of Nuclear Materials publishes high quality papers in materials research for nuclear applications, primarily fission reactors, fusion reactors, and similar environments including radiation areas of charged particle accelerators. Both original research and critical review papers covering experimental, theoretical, and computational aspects of either fundamental or applied nature are welcome. The breadth of the field is such that a wide range of processes and properties in the field of materials science and engineering is of interest to the readership, spanning atom-scale processes, microstructures, thermodynamics, mechanical properties, physical properties, and corrosion, for example. Topics covered by JNM Fission reactor materials, including fuels, cladding, core structures, pressure vessels, coolant interactions with materials, moderator and control components, fission product behavior. Materials aspects of the entire fuel cycle. Materials aspects of the actinides and their compounds. Performance of nuclear waste materials; materials aspects of the immobilization of wastes. Fusion reactor materials, including first walls, blankets, insulators and magnets. Neutron and charged particle radiation effects in materials, including defects, transmutations, microstructures, phase changes and macroscopic properties. Interaction of plasmas, ion beams, electron beams and electromagnetic radiation with materials relevant to nuclear systems.