Precipitation in Reactor Pressure Vessel Steels Under Ion and Neutron Irradiation: On the Role of Segregated Network Dislocations

Abstract The ultrahigh density of Mn-Ni-Si-Cu precipitates that form in irradiated reactor pressure vessels (RPV) result in hardening and embrittlement, which may limit the service life of aging nuclear reactors. Here, we quantitatively analyze solute segregation to, and precipitation on, network dislocations in irradiated low alloy RPV steels. The analysis is based on a broad thermodynamic framework, which allows proper identification of possible non-equilibrium perturbative effects of irradiation, like radiation induced segregation (RIS). For the first time, we quantify the segregation of Cu, Mn, Ni and Si to ≈ 5–10 nm network dislocation segments, typically separated by a string-of-pearl type array of MnNiSi precipitates (MNSPs); the MNSPs are appended to Cu rich co-precipitates (CRPs) in steels bearing this element. Detailed atom probe tomography (APT) data are reported for 16 RPV steels, with a wide matrix of tailored compositions, irradiated by both neutrons and 6.4 MeV Fe3+ ions at 320 and 290 °C, respectively. A key aspect of this study is that the very high displacement per atom (dpa) doses and radiation enhanced diffusion (RED) result in nearly full phase separation, allowing isolation of thermodynamic (equilibrium or non-equilibrium) effects. We characterize segregation and precipitates with a comprehensive set of descriptors under both ion and neutron irradiation, including: a) solute enrichment factors (EFs) at dislocations, as a function of alloy composition; and, b) matrix versus dislocation precipitates and their respective characteristics. Formation of these dislocation features can be due to RIS, or thermodynamic in origin, or both. Coupled with simple models, we show that the nucleation MNSP features in low Cu steels is enhanced by segregation. However, in typical supersaturated RPV steels, rapid growth of the precipitates is thermodynamically driven to a quantitatively predictable, nearly full phase separation mole fraction.