Characterising Irradiation Induced Damage and Phase Changes

女王大学的三位pi正在研究辐照对材料性能的影响。这是由于RMTL设施的存在（www.rmtl.ca）；该设施使女王大学成为世界上为数不多的能够对样品进行质子束辐照的大学之一。这使我们能够在材料中产生损伤，这与在高辐射应用中发现的损伤直接相当，例如在核反应堆内或在外太空中。了解辐照对材料的影响并不是直截了当的，因为材料在核反应堆环境中的表现与在传统应用中的表现大不相同。该团队正在申请资金，以购买一个受控环境差示扫描量热/热重分析（DSC/TGA）仪器和一个热导率监测系统。这些将允许监测辐射损伤对热传导的影响（对下一代燃料包壳的设计至关重要）；以及辐照对相变的影响，尤其是聚簇和沉淀。此外，我们将能够监测放射性金属和合金在核电厂潜在事故情景下的氧化动力学。这些工具将在RMTL（一个多用户设施）实施，并将提供给所有用户。

Three PIs at Queen's are seeking to understand the influence of irradiation on material properties. This is made possible by the presence of the RMTL facility (www.rmtl.ca); this facility makes Queen's one of the few universities in the world capable of carrying out proton beam irradiation of samples. This allows us to generate damage in materials, which is directly comparable to the damage found in a high radiation application, for example inside a nuclear reactor or in extraterrestrial space. Understanding the impact of irradiation on materials is not straight-forward, since materials behave quite differently in a nuclear reactor environment than in conventional applications. The team are requesting funding to purchase a controlled environment Differential Scanning Calorimetry / Thermo-Gravimetric Analysis (DSC/TGA) instrument, and a system for monitoring thermal conductivity. These will allow the monitoring of the effect of radiation damage on thermal conduction (critical for design of next generation fuel claddings); and the impact of irradiation on phase changes, in particular clustering and precipitation. In addition, we will be able to monitor oxidation kinetics of irradiated metals and alloys under potential accident scenarios in nuclear plants. The tools will be implemented at the RMTL, a multi-user facility, and will be available to all users.