In-reactor creep rupture of 20% cold-worked AISI 316 stainless steel

Towards a programme of testing and qualification for structural and plasma-facing materials in ‘fusion neutron’ environments

“…for studies of copper alloys where in-reactor tensile test results on pure copper report significantly higher retention of strain-hardening capability and uniform elongation than post-irradiation tested specimens (see figure 4) [30]. Similar behaviour has been observed for in situ versus post-irradiation creep rupture and tensile tests on irradiated Type 316 SS [31,32] 13 . Creepfatigue tests on CuCrZr also show enhanced lifetime of in situ tested specimens over both post-irradiation tested and unirradiated materials [33].…”

Critical questions in materials science and engineering for successful development of fusion power

“…Fig. 5 illustrates the extended rupture life of biaxial creep samples during exposure to irradiation as compared to unirradiated and post-irradiated samples [71]. The dramatic increase in rupture life is attributed to short-lived point defects generated during irradiation in a process termed 'dynamic hardening'.…”

Motivation for utilizing new high-performance advanced materials in nuclear energy systems

“…Historically, low cycle fatigue has been governed by ductility and high cycle fatigue has been correlated with strength [91], but the impact of irradiation on cyclic softening and other creep-fatigue processes is not well understood. There is some experimental evidence that traditional post-irradiation tensile, fatigue and creep rupture tests may produce greater degradation compared to in situ tests [97][98][99][100], but possible physical mechanisms to explain these effects are still under development.…”