Abstract
Elemental composition and morphology of a previously unidentified radiation-induced ferrite phase were investigated in a 300-series steel irradiated by neutrons in-service up to 57.6 dpa. Specimens of 18Cr-10Ni-Ti stainless steel (AISI 321 analog) were cut from a hexagonal wrapper of a fuel assembly irradiated in the BN-350 sodium-cooled fast reactor. An Fe-rich bcc-phase was observed primarily on grain boundaries. In this phase, the concentration of Cr is ∼8–12% (compared to ∼19% in the matrix), the concentration of Ni is ∼1.5–3% (∼9% in the bulk material), and the concentration of Mn is ∼0.23% (1.3% in the matrix). This Fe-rich phase is distinctly different from the retained-ferrite phase, commonly found in commercial austenitic steels. The extensive appearance of this Fe-rich ferrite on grain boundaries suggests that enhanced surface–intergranular corrosion may occur in water-cooled power reactors, arising from the low Ni, Mn, and Cr concentrations in this phase.
