Radiation damage in beryllium at 70–440°C and neutron fluence (0.3–18)·1022 cm−2 (E n > 0.1 MeV)

The results of investigations of the damage to samples of five brands of beryllium (TV-56, TV-400, TV-30, TIP, and DIP), prepared using the hot-pressing and extrusion technology and also hot isostatic pressing, are presented. The beryllium samples were irradiated in the channels of the core of an SM reactor and as part of the photoneutron source of the BOR-60 fast reactor at 70–440°C and neutron fluence (0.3–18)·1022 cm−2 (En > 0.1 MeV). The experimental program included mechanical tests for stretching and compression, measurements of the microhardness, swelling and specific thermal conductivity, as well as a study of the microstructure. The experimental results are used to construct the dose dependences of the change of the physicomechanical characteristics of beryllium at different irradiation temperatures and the trends in these dependences are analyzed.