Abstract

Specimens of Type 316 stainless steel, given different thermomechanical treatments resulting in either a cold-worked or solution-annealed and aged structure, were irradiated in the Experimental Breeder Reactor-II (EBR-II) at 500 to 600 °C (932 to 1112°F) to a fluence of 7.4 × 1026 neutrons (n)/m2 (E > 0.1 MeV). Three specimen configurations were used: small sheet tension specimens, small right-circular cylinders for immersion density, and thin foils for transmission electron microscopy (TEM). TEM revealed voids in all specimens. Immersion density indicated swelling in cold-rolled specimens only after irradiation at temperatures near 600°C (1112°F). Considerable recovery and precipitation were observed in the cold-rolled specimens. Results of tension tests revealed an increase in strength and decrease in ductility for specimens originally in a solution-annealed and aged condition. Cold-rolled specimens exhibited a decrease in strength and a slight increase in total elongation. True stress-true plastic strain was best described by the Ludwigson equation, σ = K3εn3 ± exp (K4 + n4ε), in all cases. Irradiation causes a decrease in the work-hardening exponent, n3, and strength factor, K3. After irradiation, the values of n3 and K3 tended toward common values for both preirradiation treatments.

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