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At least 1,657 records · Page 92
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1990

Quantitative characterization of spatial distribution of particles in materials: Application to materials processing

Most engineering materials contain second phase particles or fibers which serve to reinforce the matrix phase. The effect of reinforcements on material properties is usually analyzed in terms of the average volume fraction and spacing of reinforcements, quantities which are global microstructural characteristics. However, material properties can also depend on local microstructural characteristics; for example, on how uniformly the reinforcing phase is distributed in the material. The analysis method will then be applied to a materials processing problem to discover how processing parameters can be selected to maximize redistribution of the reinforcing phase during processing. Several mathematical analysis methods could be adapted to the problem of characterizing the distribution of particles in materials. A tessellation-based method was selected. In the first phase of the investigation, a software package was written to automate the analysis. Typical results are shown. The analysis technique allows the degree to which particles are clustered together, the size and spacing of particle clusters, and the particle density in clusters to be found. The analysis methods were applied to computer-generated distributions and to a few real particle-containing materials. Methods for analyzing a nonuniform particle distribution in a material can be applied to two broad classes of materials science problems: understanding how the resulting particle distribution affects properties. The analysis method described is applied to a materials processing problem: how to select extrusion conditions to maximize the redistribution of reinforcing particles that are initially nonuniformly distributed. In addition, the tessellation-based method to analyze star distributions in spiral galaxies was adapted, illustrating the diverse types of problems to which the analysis method can be applied.

Parse, J. B.↗
DOE OSTI2025

Chromium enhances the mechanical performance of 3d transition metal high entropy alloys

A comprehensive examination of the compositional effects on the deformation behavior of high entropy alloys (HEAs) was conducted through nanoindentation, indentation creep, and stress relaxation experiments at ambient temperature. The alloys investigated included NiCoFe, NiCoCr, NiCoCrFe, and NiCoCrFeMn, all of which underwent identical thermomechanical processing. From the experimental results, NiCoCr exhibited the highest maximum shear stress for dislocation nucleation (13 GPa) and nanoindentation hardness (3.8 GPa) among the alloys tested. It also showed the lowest stress sensitivity (0.02) and activation volume (3–4 b 3 ) under creep and stress relaxation conditions, indicative of its superior plastic flow properties. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations further revealed an uneven charge density and larger bonding-length variation in NiCoCr due to the presence of Cr, which increased lattice distortion, impeding dislocation movement. Furthermore, in this study, post-deformation microscopy using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) revealed a high density of stacking faults and twins in NiCoCr that effectively enhanced its creep strength. The results highlight the significance of specific elemental effects, particularly from Cr in this study, over configurational entropy effect (i.e., compositional complexity) in governing the deformation microstructure and mechanical properties of HEAs. Finally, these insights will be instrumental for the design and optimization of advanced alloys for load-bearing applications.

36 - MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2017

Irradiation of Wrought FeCrAl Tubes in the High Flux Isotope Reactor

The Advanced Fuels Campaign within the Nuclear Technology Research and Development program of the Department of Energy Office of Nuclear Energy is seeking to improve the accident tolerance of light water reactors. Alumina-forming ferritic alloys (e.g., FeCrAl) are one of the leading candidate materials for fuel cladding to replace traditional zirconium alloys because of the superior oxidation resistance of FeCrAl. However, there are still some unresolved questions regarding irradiation effects on the microstructure and mechanical properties of FeCrAl at end-of-life dose levels. In particular, there are concerns related to irradiation-induced embrittlement of FeCrAl alloys due to secondary phase formation. To address this issue, Oak Ridge National Laboratory has developed a new experimental design to irradiate shortened cladding tube specimens with representative 17×17 array pressurized water reactor diameter and thickness in the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) under relevant temperatures (300–350°C). Post-irradiation examination will include studies of dimensional change, microstructural changes, and mechanical performance. This report briefly summarizes the capsule design concept and the irradiation test matrix for six rabbit capsules. Each rabbit contains two FeCrAl alloy tube specimens. The specimens include Generation I and Generation II FeCrAl alloys with varying processing conditions, Cr concentrations, and minor alloying elements. The rabbits were successfully assembled, welded, evaluated, and delivered to the HFIR along with a complete quality assurance fabrication package. Pictures of the rabbit assembly process and detailed dimensional inspection of select specimens are included in this report. The rabbits were inserted into HFIR starting in cycle 472 (May 2017).

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2018

Low-Cost Titanium Casting Technology

This is the final report of "Low-Cost Titanium Casting Technology" project. Titanium alloys have attracted increasing attentions as structural materials for high performance and weight-sensitive applications in aerospace and biomedical fields. However, in mass-production of civil applications like automotive components, titanium alloys are scarcely used due to the unaffordable costs in manufacturing compared with other metallic materials, such as aluminum, magnesium and steel. Therefore, there is a need to reduce the manufacturing cost of titanium alloys so that titanium alloys can be more competitive in terms of property and cost considerations. In this 4-year project, we started from exploring new low-cost titanium alloy systems with the guidance of Integrated Computational Materials Engineering – Calculation of Phase Diagram (ICME-CALPHAD) framework, and determined several promising alloy systems, alloying elements including Ti-Al-Fe-Mn-B-C, that can allow further development (lab-scale and industry-scale) in the future. During the new alloy system exploration, considerable amount of scientific work was completed regarding CALPHAD modeling, microstructure morphology, mechanical properties, and processing of the new alloy systems. The relevant ternary titanium alloy systems, Ti-Al-Mn and Ti-Al-Fe, were examined and reassessed both computationally and experimentally, leading to more comprehensive understanding of these alloy systems. Based on this above study, a new low-cost casting titanium alloy was developed, Ti-6Al-5Fe-0.05B-0.05C (designated as T65-0.05BC), which has competitive as-cast strength level with current commercial titanium alloys but relatively low ductility. However, in this project, since the target application, automotive engine connecting rod, is a fatigue-limited component and does not require high ductility, this alloy shall suffice as the deliverable alloy in this project. After designing and confirming the potent of the new alloy, we designed and built a lab-scale manufacturing equipment aided by computational tools at OSU labs to conceptually prove that this alloy can be manufactured with permanent mold casting, which is low-cost and potentially a mass production process. We produced a lab-scale prototype connecting rod demonstrating the capability of permanent mold casting of this new alloy.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2019

Irradiation damage and IASCC of printed 316L for use as fuel cladding

Additive manufacturing is an area of increasing interest to the nuclear industry. It offers a number of benefits over traditional manufacturing methods, such as the ability to create complex geometries without the need for welds. In addition to the potential for creating nuclear structural components, additive manufacturing may be used to create novel fuel/cladding designs. However, printed steel behaves differently than traditional wrought material. A number of industries are already studying the effects of the printed microstructures on mechanical properties. For cladding material and some structural nuclear components, however, the nuclear industry must also understand the material response to irradiation. This work examines the irradiation damage and the irradiation assisted stress corrosion cracking behavior of both proton irradiated (1 and 5 dpa) printed 316L steel and wrought 316L steel that were irradiated side by side at the Michigan Ion Beam Laboratory. As orientation with respect to the build direction can affect the mechanical properties of printed metal, specimens were taken from multiple orientations within the printed steel. For the IASCC testing, specimens were strained to 4% in simulated BWR NWC water (288°C, 0.2 µS/cm). TEM, SEM and X-ray microCT were used to examine coupons of the material as well as tensile bars used in the IASCC testing. This paper will show the key findings from this work, namely the IASCC response of printed metal (as compared to wrought), as well as the effects of the printed microstructure (such as the pre-existing voids) on the irradiation damage.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Disentangling Electronic Transport and Hysteresis at Individual Grain Boundaries in Hybrid Perovskites via Automated Scanning Probe Microscopy

Underlying the rapidly increasing photovoltaic efficiency and stability of metal halide perovskites (MHPs) is the advancement in the understanding of the microstructure of polycrystalline MHP thin film. Over the past decade, intense efforts have been aimed at understanding the effect of microstructures on MHP properties, including chemical heterogeneity, strain disorder, phase impurity, etc. It has been found that grain and grain boundary (GB) are tightly related to lots of microscale and nanoscale behavior in MHP thin films. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) is widely used to observe grain and boundary structures in topography and subsequently to study the correlative surface potential and conductivity of these structures. For now, most AFM measurements have been performed in imaging mode to study the static behavior; in contrast, AFM spectroscopy mode allows us to investigate the dynamic behavior of materials, e.g., conductivity under sweeping voltage. However, a major limitation of AFM spectroscopy measurements is that they require manual operation by human operators, and as such only limited data can be obtained, hindering systematic investigations of these microstructures. Here, we designed a workflow combining the conductive AFM measurement with a machine learning (ML) algorithm to systematically investigate grain boundaries in MHPs. The trained ML model can extract GBs locations from the topography image, and the workflow drives the AFM probe to each GB location to perform a current–voltage (IV) curve automatically. Then, we are able to have IV curves at all GB locations, allowing us to systematically understand the property of GBs. Using this method, we discovered that the GB junction points are less conductive, potentially more photoactive, and can play critical roles in MHP stability, while most previous works only focused on the difference between GB and grains.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2021

Constructing high-performance radiation-resistant ternary YSZ-MgO-CNT nanocomposites via tailored nanostructures

Developing long-lifetime bulk-form ceramic-based materials with high irradiation resistance is crucial for advanced nuclear systems. Here, we incorporated carbon nanotubes (CNTs) into yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) and magnesia (MgO) nanocrystals to fabricate bulk YSZ-MgO-CNT nanocomposites with abundant ternary nanostructures by spark plasma sintering. To understand the role of tailored ternary nanostructure on irradiation, we investigated the microstructure and mechanical properties evolutions of the YSZ-MgO-CNT nanocomposites irradiated by multi-energy He + ions at high temperature to different fluences. Compared with the single-phase YSZ and ultrafine-grained YSZ-MgO composites, the YSZ-MgO-CNT nanocomposites possessed higher ability to manage irradiation-induced He bubbles/defects via the defect-interface interactions of proposed “loading-unloading” and “loading-transporting-unloading” mechanisms for controlling the dynamical behaviors of He atoms/defects in the CNT-doped ternary nanostructures, thereby presenting more stable microstructure and better performance in resisting irradiation hardening. In conclusion, this work provides insight into the design of advanced inert matrix nuclear fuel and new nuclear waste management materials.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2018

Interfacial characterization by TEM and nanoindentation of W-Eurofer brazed joints for the first wall component of the DEMO fusion reactor

Highlights: • Interfacial characterization of W-Eurofer joints by TEM and nanoindentation has been accomplished. • Microstructural and mechanical properties were in complete agreement. • The combination of both nano-techniques allows to obtain valuable information about braze interfaces. - Abstract: The interfacial characterization of W-Eurofer brazed joints, which could be implemented in the first wall component of the future DEMO nuclear fusion reactor, has been carried out by TEM and nanoindentation. The Eurofer-braze interface is characterized by the formation of two reaction layers formed during the melting stage of the filler in the brazing process, which reported high hardness and modulus values. The obtained microstructure supposes a homogenous transition between the base material and the braze. However, in the W-braze interface a more defined interface is formed, where the presence of an intermetallic transition compound has been identified. The combination of both techniques allows to study the resultant microstructure and to analyze the mechanical response of the phases, which constitute the interface and could be helpful to control the brazing conditions avoiding undesirable brazeability problems.

77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Size Effects on Laser Powder Bed Fusion and Laser Powder Directed Energy Deposition GRCop-42 Alloy

Additive manufacturing (AM) plays a significant role in the fabrication of regeneratively cooled rocket engine combustion chambers, where internal channels are used to transport high pressure propellants to keep the engine from overheating. Cooling channels are designed with thin walls between the cooling and combustion sides, experiencing high thermal and mechanical stresses from large temperature gradients and internal pressures. Hence, selecting materials suited for this environment and maintaining a high-quality processing for this critical application is of utmost importance. GRCop-alloys (Cu-Cr-Nb) were developed as an ideal material for combustion chambers due to its high conductivity and high strength at temperature, being employed as a structural member for the hotwall with excellent heat transfer capabilities. GRCop-42 (Cu, 4 at% Cr, 2 at% Nb) has significantly matured using the Laser Powder Bed Fusion (L-PBF) process through microstructure, mechanical and thermophysical properties and evaluations using hot-fire testing. Additionally, Laser Powder Directed Energy Deposition (LP-DED) has demonstrated successful deposition and geometry samples using GRCop-42. While the maturation in properties has focused on bulk material properties from standard test specimens, these cannot be extrapolated to be used in thin walls, as different features (i.e., microstructure, porosity, and surface texture) have a greater effect on thin walls, especially on AM structures built using L-PBF and LP-DED. This presentation provides an overview of the effects introduced by reducing the thickness on the fabrication, microstructure, surface metrology and subsequent mechanical properties of GRCop-42 using L-PBF and LP-DED as well as future work planned for this research.

Gabriel Demeneghi↗
DOE OSTI2018

Fabrication and Analysis of Tri-layer YBa{sub 2}Cu{sub 3}O{sub 7−δ} Thick Films by Low-Fluorine MOD Method

Improving the thickness of superconducting layer in coated conductors is an effective way to enhance its critical current. In this work, tri-layer YBCO/YBCO/YDyBCO films were successfully deposited on buffered Hastelloy substrate using the multi-coating lowfluorine metal-organic decomposition (LF-MOD) method and the thickness of the films can be up to 2.4 μ m. The effects of high-temperature annealing time on microstructures and superconducting properties of the films were systematically studied. Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) results reveal that there remains a large amount of F element in the upper layer of the film when the annealing time is too short. With increasing the annealing time, the fluoride-containing precursor converts to YBCO grains completely. But the coarsening of grains appeared, and the critical current density (J{sub c}) of the film dropped slightly when the annealing time is too long. The cross-sectional scanning electron microscope (SEM) image and EDS plane analysis were applied to investigate the microstructure and element distribution of the final triple-layer YBCO films, respectively. The critical current of the final YBCO superconducting film could reach 316 A (77 k, self-field) for 1.2-cm-wide tapes with the optimal annealing conditions.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2018

Strengthening effects and thermal stability of the ultrafine grained microstructure of a nickel base superalloy at room and elevated temperatures

Highlights: • UFG Alloy 718-5 vol.%Y{sub 2}O{sub 3} alloy is fabricated from alloy machining chips. • The kind of oxide nanoparticles is identified in Nb-rich superalloys. • High thermal stable nanoparticles and UFG microstructure is achieved. • The GB strengthening effects at 25 °C and 650 °C of UFG alloy are calculated. - Abstract: An ultrafine grained (UFG) nickel base superalloy doped with 5 vol.%Y{sub 2}O{sub 3} nanoparticles, Alloy 718-5 vol.%Y{sub 2}O{sub 3}, was fabricated by a powder metallurgy route which combines high energy mechanical milling of Alloy 718 machining chips, spark plasma sintering, hot extrusion and heat treatment, and its microstructure and mechanical properties at room temperature and 650 °C were studied. The study showed that the Y{sub 2}O{sub 3} nanoparticles reacted with Al from the base alloy and transformed to Y{sub 4}Al{sub 2}O{sub 9} nanoparticles (average diameter: 12.5 nm) which were stable during heat treatment at 970 °C (0.78T{sub m}, where T{sub m} is the solidus temperature of the alloy in K). As a result of the high thermal stability of Y{sub 4}Al{sub 2}O{sub 9} nanoparticles and their effective pinning of the grain boundaries, the UFG microstructure (average grain size: 179 nm) of the alloy was stable during heat treatment. Grain boundary and nanoparticle strengthening rendered the heat treated Alloy 718-5 vol.%Y{sub 2}O{sub 3} alloy with a notable room temperature tensile yield strength of 1870 MPa. It was demonstrated that the grain boundary strengthening effect associated with the UFG microstructure was still significant at 650 °C, but clearly decreased from its level at room temperature. The grain boundary strengthening and nanoparticle strengthening effects which are likely to be independent of test temperature sustain a reasonably high tensile yield strength of 800 MPa at 650 °C, despite the absence of γ′ and γ″ precipitates in the UFG microstructure.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Creep-Resistant Ferritic-Martensitic Steels for Power Plant Applications

Creep-resistant ferritic-martensitic steels are essential materials used in power plants for electricity generation. The efficiency and emissions of the plant are closely related to the operating temperature. Materials used in the hottest sections are one of the main limiting factor for plant operation at 650 °C. This review describes the recent development of creep-resistant ferritic-martensitic steels from a large dataset of in-house research. The findings are tied to available literature for discussion. A first steel, CPJ-7, was developed with an operating temperature approaching 650 °C, and a refined design, JMP, showed the potential to operate at 650 °C. Approximately fifty different ingots, each weighing ~ 7 kg, were vacuum induction melted and processed. Overall, wrought and cast versions of CPJ-7 present superior creep properties when compared to wrought and cast versions of COST alloys for steam turbine and P91/92 for boiler applications. The prolonged creep life was attributed to slowing down the process of the destabilization of the MX and M 23 C 6 precipitates at 650 °C. The cast version of CPJ-7 also revealed superior mechanical performance, above commercially available cast 9% Cr martensitic steel or derivatives. Following the work on CPJ-7, the JMP steels were designed with higher Co for increased solid solution strengthening, Si for oxidation resistance and increased W for matrix strength and stability. The JMP steels showed increases in creep life compared to CPJ-7 between 118 and 150% at 650 °C for testing at various stresses between 138 and 207 MPa. On a Larson–Miller plot, the performance of the JMP steels surpasses that of state-of-the-art MARBN steel. The influence of various elements within the composition of the alloys on the microstructure and mechanical properties is discussed. This review presents approximately 420,000 h of in-house creep testing, the equivalent of almost 50 years of cumulative creep tests.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Decarburization and Carburization Behavior of Grade 91 Steel in Sodium Environments

Two heats of G91 steel have been investigated in sodium at 550-650°C to understand its corrosion behaviour, microstructural evolution, and tensile properties. Sodium exposure tests of subsized tensile and coupon specimens of G91 base metal and weldment were conducted in Argonne’s forced convection sodium materials testing loops. Maximum exposure times of ~39,000 h at 550°C, ~37,000 h at 600°C, and ~20,000 h at 650°C have been achieved, respectively. Thermal aging experiments of G91 steel were conducted in parallel, and the data of the sodium-exposed specimens were compared with the thermal aging data of the same heat to isolate the thermal aging effect from the effect of sodium exposure. It was found that the tensile strength of G91 steel can be reduced by more than 50% after sodium exposures at 650°C. The effect of a sodium environment on tensile properties is largely dependent on the carburization/decarburization behavior of G91 steel exposed to sodium. The carbon concentrations in sodium in Argonne’s SMT-1 and SMT-2 loops were determined by the equilibration method. The carbon activity in sodium was established by equilibrating high-purity nickel in sodium, analyzing the material for carbon, and using the reported data on the carbon solubility for this material. The carbon activity results were combined with the carbon solubility data in sodium to establish the carbon concentration in sodium. The carbon concentrations in the SMT-1 and SMT-2 loop were estimated to be 1.23 and 0.25 ppm, respectively. With this initial success, we will continue to monitor the carbon contents in the two loops to correlate the microstructural and mechanical property changes with the sodium purity. Future experiments will also consider sodium exposure tests in controlled carbon activities. Online monitoring and control of carbon contents in sodium in nuclear reactors would also be of interest. Thermodynamic analysis was conducted to understand the carburization-decarburization behavior of G91 steel exposed to sodium in the SMT-1 and SMT-2 loops. The equilibrium carbon activity in the alloy was evaluated by the thermodynamics of M 23 C 6 carbides. The calculated carburization-decarburization boundary showed that G91 would undergo decarburization at 650°C in the SMT-1 loop and carburization at 600°C in the SMT-2 loop, which is consistent with our findings from the sodium exposure tests. Future work will include thermodynamic analysis of the carbon concentration – activity relationship including the effect of carbide-forming elements, vanadium and niobium in G91 steel. Kinetics of carbon diffusion and the effect on microstructure and mechanical performance under various service conditions will also be investigated. The ultimate goal is to understand the mechanisms and the kinetics of carbon transfer in the sodium-steel system and to provide a basis for predicting the effect of long-term decarburization-carburization process on the integrity of reactor components.

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗
DOE OSTI2024

Designing Ti-6Al-4V microstructure for strain delocalization using neural networks

Abstract The deformation behavior of Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloy is significantly influenced by slip localized within crystallographic slip bands. Experimental observations reveal that intense slip bands in Ti-6Al-4V form at strains well below the macroscopic yield strain and may serially propagate across grain boundaries, resulting in long-range localization that percolates through the microstructure. These connected, localized slip bands serve as potential sites for crack initiation. Although slip localization in Ti-6Al-4V is known to be influenced by various factors, an investigation of optimal microstructures that limit localization remains lacking. In this work, we develop a novel strategy that integrates an explicit slip band crystal plasticity technique, graph networks, and neural network models to identify Ti-6Al-4V microstructures that reduce the propensity for strain localization. Simulations are conducted on a dataset of 3D polycrystals, each represented as a graph to account for grain neighborhood and connectivity. The results are then used to train neural network surrogate models that accurately predict localization-based properties of a polycrystal, given its microstructure. These properties include the ratio of slip accumulated in the band to that in the matrix, fraction of total applied strain accommodated by slip bands, and spatial connectivity of slip bands throughout the microstructure. The initial dataset is enriched by synthetic data generated by the surrogate models, and a grid search optimization is subsequently performed to find optimal microstructures. Describing a 3D polycrystal with only a few features and a combination of graph and neural network models offer robustness compared to the alternative approaches without compromising accuracy. We show that while each material property is optimized through a unique microstructure solution, elongated grain shape emerges as a recurring feature among all optimal microstructures. This finding suggests that designing microstructures with elongated grains could potentially mitigate strain localization without compromising strength.

Ahmadikia, Behnam↗
DOE OSTI2021

Prediction of Probabilistic Shock Initiation Thresholds of Energetic Materials Through Evolution of Thermal-Mechanical Dissipation and Reactive Heating

The ignition threshold of an energetic material (EM) quantifies the macroscopic conditions for the onset of self-sustaining chemical reactions. The threshold is an important theoretical and practical measure of material attributes that relate to safety and reliability. Historically, the thresholds are measured experimentally. In this work, we present a new Lagrangian computational framework for establishing the probabilistic ignition thresholds of heterogeneous EM out of the evolutions of coupled mechanical-thermal-chemical processes using mesoscale simulations. Furthermore, the simulations explicitly account for microstructural heterogeneities, constituent properties, and interfacial processes and capture processes responsible for the development of material damage and the formation of hotspots in which chemical reactions initiate. The specific mechanisms tracked include viscoelasticity, viscoplasticity, fracture, post-fracture contact, frictional heating, heat conduction, reactive chemical heating, gaseous product generation, and convective heat transfer. To determine the ignition threshold, the minimum macroscopic loading required to achieve self-sustaining chemical reactions with a rate of reactive heat generation exceeding the rate of heat loss due to conduction and other dissipative mechanisms is determined. Probabilistic quantification of the processes and the thresholds are obtained via the use of statistically equivalent microstructure sample sets (SEMSS). The predictions are in agreement with available experimental data.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2017

2017 Status report-Tritium aging studies on stainless steel: Effect of hydrogen, tritium and decay helium on the fracture-toughness properties of stem, cup and block forgings

The materials of construction of tritium reservoirs are forged stainless steels. During service, the structural properties of the stainless steel change over time because of the diffusion of tritium into the reservoir wall and its radioactive decay to helium-3. This aging effect can cause cracks to initiate and grow which could result in a tritium leak or delayed failure of a tritium reservoir. Numerous factors affect the tendency for crack formation and propagation and are being investigated in this program. The goal of the research is to provide relevant fracture mechanics data that can be used by the design agencies in their assessments of tritium reservoir structural integrity. In this status report, new experimental results are presented on the effects of tritium and decay helium on the cracking properties of specimens taken from actual tritium reservoir forgings instead of the experimental forgings of past programs. The properties measured are more representative of actual reservoir properties because the microstructure of the specimens tested are more like that of the actual tritium reservoirs. The program was designed to measure the effects of material variables on tritium compatibility and includes two stainless steels (Type 304L and 316L stainless steel), multiple yield strengths (360-500 MPa), and multiple forging shapes (Stem, Cup, and Block).

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRS1990

Tensile properties of HA 230 and HA 188 after 400 and 2500 hour exposures to LiF-22CaF2 and vacuum at 1093 K

The solid-to-liquid phase transformation of the nominal LiF-20CaF2 eutectic at 1043 K is considered to be an ideal candidate thermal energy storage mechanism for a space based low temperature Brayton cycle solar dynamic system. Although Co, Fe, and Ni superalloys are thought to be suitable containment materials for LiF based salts, long term containment is of concern because molten fluorides are usually corrosive and Cr can be lost into space through evaporation. Two examples of commercially available superalloys in sheet form, the Ni-base material HA 230 and the Co-base material Ha 88, have been exposed to molten LiF-22CaF2, its vapor, and vacuum, at 1093 K, for 400 and 2500 hr. Triplicate tensile testing of specimens subjected to all three environments have been undertaken between 77 to 1200 K. Comparison of the weight gain data, microstructure, and tensile properties indicate that little, if any, difference in behavior can be ascribed to the exposure environment.

Whittenberger, J. Daniel↗
DOE OSTI2024

Rapid Design of Cost-Effective Refractory High Entropy Alloys Strengthened by Precipitation

Funded by the ARPA-E ULTIMATE program, this project aims to develop cost-effective refractory high entropy alloys (RHEAs) for gas turbine blades applications at 1300 degree Celsius and above. The alloy design focuses on carbides precipitation strengthening in a strong and ductile solid solution BCC matrix. The goal is to achieve balanced mechanical properties including room temperature ductility & fracture toughness and high temperature strength and creep resistance, while maintaining comparable oxidation resistance and densities to Ni-base superalloys. To accelerate alloy design, multiscale modeling including CALPHAD and first-principles density functional theory (DFT) calculations and machine learning are performed. Specifically, high throughput phase diagram calculations and screening are carried out using CALPHAD; DFT calculations are performed to predict intrinsic ductility, grain boundary strengthening potential, coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) and temperature-dependent elastic constants. Temperature dependent yield stress, creep strain and CTE are also predicted using machine learning. Down-selected alloys are synthesized in small buttons of about 250g using arc melting for rapid evaluation on microstructure and mechanical properties before employing plasma arc melting and additive manufacturing for producing large ingots. Preliminary computational and experimental results of this project will be presented and future direction in RHEA development will be discussed.

high temperature materials↗