About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
2026 TMS Annual Meeting & Exhibition
|
| Symposium
|
Materials and Chemistry for Molten Salt Systems
|
| Presentation Title |
Microstructural Damage and Its Role in Corrosion Dealloying in Ni-Cr Alloy |
| Author(s) |
Sean H. Mills, Ho Lun Chan, Elena Romanovskaia, Valentin Romanovski, Iliana Marrujo, Harjot Singh, Peter Hosemann, John R Scully, Andrew Minor |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Sean H. Mills |
| Abstract Scope |
Structural materials in nuclear reactors degrade due to the combined effects of irradiation, elevated temperatures, and corrosion. Establishing a direct correlation between corrosion behavior and microstructure is critical, albeit challenging, due to the complex interactions among alloying elements, salt species, and microstructural heterogeneities such as dislocations, grain boundaries, and voids. This study implements advanced electron microscopy techniques to investigate the microstructural evolution in model Ni20Cr (wt.%) alloy subjected to 30% cold rolling followed by electrochemical LiF-NaF-KF (FLiNaK) molten salt corrosion. Following cold-rolling and corrosion, sub-micrometer scale recrystallization is observed, linked to dense dislocation networks along grain boundaries and other pre-existing defects. These regions undergo Cr dealloying and salt infiltration. Notably, this corrosion behavior propagates over hundreds of micrometers, suggesting that pre-existing microstructural damage can serve as a fast diffusion pathway for metal extraction, potentially accelerating component failure, shedding light on alloy processing on material stability in corrosive nuclear reactor environments. |
| Proceedings Inclusion? |
Planned: |
| Keywords |
Nuclear Materials, Characterization, |