The effects induced by proton irradiation on structural characteristics of nuclear graphite

A grade TSX graphite was irradiated by a 2.5 MeV proton and a dose of 1.47 × 1018 ion cm−2 at 330 K. The displacement per atom under this irradiation condition was about 0.02. The lattice parameter, crystallite size and the vacancies density in the graphite was measured before and after irradiation. It was found that the proton irradiation led to an increase in the volume of the sample. The volume change in the irradiated sample was confirmed by atomic force and scanning electron microscopes observations as increased roughness and pore size. Also, FTIR results showed that graphite is slightly oxidized by irradiation.