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Microstructure evolution and toughness degeneration of 9Cr martensitic steel after aging at 550 °C for 20000 h

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Abstract

The China Low Activation Martensitic (CLAM) steel is one of 9Cr martensitic steels, and it has been selected as the primary candidate structural material for future fusion reactors in China. It is essential to understand the thermal stability of CLAM steel to ensure the operation safety during exposures at operating temperatures. In this paper, the thermal aging behavior of CLAM steel at 550 °C for 20000 h was studied. Microstructure evolution and mechanical property change were investigated. The results showed that Laves phase was mainly precipitated along the martensitic lath boundaries and grain boundaries in CLAM samples after aging for more than 4000 h, and its size increased faster than that of M23C6. The size of TaC had no obvious changed but its number increased after aging. The microstructure evolution resulted to degradation of the mechanical property, especially the ductile-to-brittle transition temperature (DBTT), which was increased from − 92 to − 43 °C after aging for 20000 h. The possible mechanism of DBTT increasing had been analyzed based on the interaction between precipitations and grain boundaries.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Magnetic Confinement Fusion Science Program of China with Grant Nos. 2014GB112003 and 2015GB109006, the National Science Foundation of China with Grant No. 11632001, the Foundation of President of Hefei Institutes of Physical Science with Grant No. YZJJ201519, the Youth Innovation Promotion Association CAS with Grant Nos. 2017486, and the CAS Pioneer Hundred Talents Program. The authors thank Prof. Yican Wu for the guidance on this work and show great appreciation to other members in FDS Team for their support and contribution to this research.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Neutronics and Radiation Safety, Institute of Nuclear Energy Safety Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, 230031, Anhui, China

    Wei Wang, Xiaodong Mao, Shaojun Liu, Gang Xu & Bin Wang

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  1. Wei Wang
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  2. Xiaodong Mao
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  3. Shaojun Liu
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  4. Gang Xu
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  5. Bin Wang
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Correspondence to Gang Xu.

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Wang, W., Mao, X., Liu, S. et al. Microstructure evolution and toughness degeneration of 9Cr martensitic steel after aging at 550 °C for 20000 h. J Mater Sci 53, 4574–4581 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-017-1868-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-017-1868-x

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