Heavy ion irradiation damage in Zr3(Al0.9Si0.1)C2 MAX phase

Abstract

A Zr 3 (Al 0.9 Si 0.1 )C 2 MAX phase-based ceramic with 22% wt. ZrC and 10% wt. Zr 5 Si 3 has been irradiated with 52 MeV I 9+ ions at room temperature, achieving a maximum dose of 8 displacements per atom (dpa). The response of this MAX phase-rich material to irradiation has been studied using scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction techniques. Post-irradiation examination of the material revealed a number of crystalline changes to the MAX phase. At low doses, Zr 3 (Al 0.9 Si 0.1 )C 2 maintained a high degree of crystallinity, while at the highest doses, its degree of crystallinity was reduced significantly. A number of radiation-induced phase transformations were observed, including the decomposition of Zr 3 (Al 0.9 Si 0.1 )C 2 into ZrC and other phases, and the formation of -Zr 3 (Al,Si)C 2 , a MAX phase with a rearranged stacking sequence. Microstructural examination revealed that the majority of the extended defects in Zr 3 (Al 0.9 Si 0.1 )C 2 lie in the (0001) basal planes. Analysis of X-ray diffraction profiles after heat treating the 8 dpairradiated material for one hour at 300°C and at 600°C showed that there were only subtle changes to the profiles relative to that of the 8 dpa-irradiated material which had not been heat treated. Overall, the experimental results of this study show that the Zr 3 (Al 0.9 Si 0.1 )C 2 MAX phase responds less well to irradiation relative to other MAX phases irradiated with high energy heavy ions at room temperature.

Study of irradiation temperature effect on change of structural, optical, and strength properties of BeO ceramics when irradiated with Ar8+ and Xe22 heavy ions

“…Most defects are annihilated during migration, which leads to relaxation of deformations and microstresses. However, at high irradiation densities, defect overlap regions are formed, which form regions with a nonequilibrium defect concentration, which leads to disordering and further amorphization of the structure and a decrease in the ceramic hardness along the entire ion path, as well as to the formation of additional optical traps and an increase in the photoionization cross section affecting the re ection ability of ceramics BeO [21,22]. However, the question still remains open related to the behavior of the structural and strength properties of BeO ceramics to high-temperature irradiation.…”

Zr2Al3C4 Coatings on Zirconium-alloy Substrates with Enhanced Adhesion and Diffusion Barriers by Al/Mo-C Interlayers

“…In the past three years, Zr3AlC2 and Zr2AlC phases have been synthesized in bulk, but the materials still contain large amounts of ZrC phase [10][11] . Qarra, et al [12] investigated the heavy ion irradiation damage in Zr2AlC-rich material, and found that irradiated Zr2AlC was partially amorphous at room temperature but remained crystalline at high temperature.…”