Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

• Roghayeh Jafari ¹
• Mohammad Amin Amirkhani Dehkordi ²
• Effat Yahaghi ³
• Behrouz Rokrok ²
• Mohsen Assadi Asadabad ²

¹ Physics Department, Basic Science Faculty, Imam Khomeini International University, P.O.Box: 34148-96818, Qazvin – Iran

² Reactor and Nuclear Safety Research School, Nuclear Science and Technology Research Institute, AEOI, P.O.Box: 14155-1339, Tehran - Iran

³ دانشگاه بین المللی امام خمینی

Abstract

Abstract: Identification of the changes of aluminum structure due to neutron radiation is very important in the reactor fuel clad. In some cases, ion (usually proton beam) irradiation method is implemented for this investigation. The changes in the holes of Al are in the range of picometers by the radiation of energetic protons. In this research, positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy, was used to investigate the changes of holes in Al-6061 and Al-303 due to the radiation of 2.2 MeV protons at different amounts of radiation. This method has the ability to evaluate the dimensions of the holes in the range of picometers and nanometers. For both investigated aluminum samples, the results show that the value of τave first decreased and then increased. It indicates the holes became smaller and decrease the vacancy defects in the initial stages of irradiation. Then, the holes became larger in the continuation of irradiation, which indicates increasing the interstitial defects. These results were also confirmed by XRD test. It can be seen that the crystal size of the irradiated aluminum increased at the in the initial stages of irradiation and then decreased in the continuation of irradiation.

Keywords

• radiation damage
• fuel clad aluminum
• positron radiation
• Positron Annihilation Lifetime Spectroscopy

Main Subjects

• INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY