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arXiv · 2201.04958

Model-based quantitative methods to predict irradiation-induced swelling in alloys

Wei Ge·Shijun Zhao·Chenxu Wang·Haocheng Liu·Yue Su·Jia Huang·Zhiying Gao·Jianming Xue·Steven J. Zinkle·Yugang Wang
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Abstract

Predicting volume swelling of structural materials in nuclear reactors under high-dose neutron irradiations based on existing low-dose experiments or irradiation data with high-dose-rate energetic particles has been a long-standing challenge for safety evaluation and rapidly screening irradiation-resistant materials in nuclear energy systems. Here, we build an Additional Defect Absorption Model that describes the irradiation-induced swelling effects produced by energetic electrons, heavy-ions, and neutrons by considering additional defect sinks inherent in the irradiation process. Based on this model, we establish quantitative methods to predict high-dose swelling from low-dose behavior and obtain the equivalent irradiation dose for different energetic particles when the dose rates differ by several orders of magnitude. Furthermore, we propose a universal parameter to characterize the swelling resistance of various alloys and predict their radiation tolerances under different radiation conditions. This work provides quantitative prediction methods for evaluating irradiation-induced swelling effects of structural materials, which is critical to the safety and material development for advanced nuclear reactors.

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Wei Ge, Shijun Zhao, Chenxu Wang, Haocheng Liu, Yue Su, Jia Huang, Zhiying Gao, Jianming Xue, Steven J. Zinkle, Yugang Wang. 2022-01-06. Model-based quantitative methods to predict irradiation-induced swelling in alloys. https://arxiv.org/abs/2201.04958

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