Radiation-induced hardening of ion-irradiated Zircaloy-2 at 573 K under applied stress

Abstract

The microstructural evolution and hardening of Zircaloy-2 under low-dose irradiation (<1.0 dpa) with 3.2 MeV Ni3+ ions under applied stress at 573 K were investigated using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) examination and nano-indentation measurements in this study. The irradiation doses ranged from 0.05 to 1 dpa. The formation of < a > loops was observed at doses below 0.05 dpa, and the density was found to be saturated at about 0.1 dpa. The < a > loops then grew and intersected with adjacent loops to become entangled at doses above 0.4 dpa. Radiation-induced hardening was confirmed in Zircaloy-2 at the early stage of irradiation below 0.1 dpa, and the hardening effect was attributed to the nucleation and growth of < a > loops. The Orowan equation was used to estimate the contribution of dislocation loops to the hardening, and the estimated values were in good agreement with the experimental results, with the obstacle strength factor of < a > loops as 0.25. Furthermore, the effect of applied stress of 1 dpa irradiated tensile samples on radiation-induced hardening was also discussed. This study provides dislocation loop formation and hardening behavior of Zircaloy-2 under low-dose irradiation at 573 K with stress conditions.