THE MICROSTRUCTURE AND TENSILE PROPERTIES OF FE-CR ALLOYS AFTER NEUTRON-IRRADIATION AT 400-DEGREES-C TO 5.5-7.1 DPA

Room temperature tensile properties, void swelling and microstructural changes in Fe-Cr alloys (0, 2, 6, 12 and 18 at.% Cr) have been studie d following irradiation at 400 degrees C in the BR-10 fast reactor to doses in the range 5.5-7.1 dpa. Swelling of 3%, 0.03% and 0.1% was fou nd in Fe, Fe-2Cr and Fe-12Cr alloys, respectively. No voids were obser ved in Fe-6Cr and Fe-18Cr alloys. In Fe, Fe-2Cr and Fe-6Cr dislocation loops lie in 1 0 0 habit planes and have a [1 0 0] Burgers vector, wh ile in Fe-12Cr and Fe-18Cr alloys a mixed population of loops with a[1 0 0] and a/2[1 1 1] Burgers vectors have been observed. The strength of irradiated alloys increases and ductility decreases with increasing Cr content. Fe-18Cr alloy revealed a severe embrittlement after irrad iation. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.