Radiation effects and differential damage in binary carbide hybrids

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Recent innovations in material science has led to a range of new materials being identified as being usable within nuclear reactor cores, these range from SiC based ceramics, to novel alloys such as FeCrAl, and to hybrids with both metallic and ceramic properties. One specific area that is become more timely is the potential use of binary carbides such as SiC-SiC which is a system based on two distinct SiC phases. This proposal takes this work as a concept, modifying it to use SiC and TiC, two carbides with different material properties, but which together may have advantageous properties when used within a nuclear core.This proposal examines the effects of damage on the interfaces between the TiC and SiC, for example the impact of differential expansion due to induced damage, or the potential for fission gas bubble formation at the interfaces. These are just two of the potential issues that face such systems and which are part of this work.The project utilises the unique facilities at Argonne National Laboratory (IVEM-TANDEM), and at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (LAMDA), in concert with the ATR-NSUF programme providing access.