Characterization of Microstructure and Stability of Precipitation in SIMP Steel Irradiated with Energetic Fe Ions

A type of home-made reduced activation martensitic steel, high silicon （SIMP） steel, is homogeneously irradiated with energetic Fe ions to the doses of 0.1, 0.25 and 1 displacement per atom （dpa）, respectively, at 300℃ and i dpa, at 400℃. MicrostructurM changes are investigated in detail by transmission electron microscopy with cross-section technique. Interstitial defects and defect dusters induced by Fe-ion irradiation are observed in ali the specimens under different conditions. It is found that with increasing irradiation temperature, size of defect clusters increases while the density drops quickly. The results of element chemical mapping from the STEM images indicate that the Si element enrichment and Ta element depletion occur inside the precipitates in the matrix of SIMP steel irradiated to a dose of 1 dpa at 300℃. Correlations between the microstructure and irradiation conditions are briefly discussed.

Preparation of Nanometer Nd3＋,Y3＋ Co-doped CaF2 Powder by Coprecipitation-azeotropic Distillation Technique

The synthesis of Nd3＋,Y3＋：CaF2 nanopowder was conducted by azeotropic distillation method,which effectively dehydrated hydrous CaF2 and prevented forming hard agglomerates.X-ray diffraction（XRD）,scanning electron microscopy（SEM）,scanning calorimetries-thermalgravimetry（DSC-TG）,Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy（FT-IR） and absorption spectroscopy were performed to characterize the powder properties.The experimental results showed that products obtained by azeotropic distillation were single phased,rather monodispersed,successfully prevented the hard agglomerate formation and effectively removed the residual water inside the as-prepared precipitate than that of the direct drying.The absorption spectra showed a wider and stronger absorption bands around 792 nm,which should be profitable for LD pumping.

Aging behavior and precipitate characterization of Zn-rich Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys with various Mg and Cu contents

Four Zn-rich Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys with different Mg and Cu contents were fabricated by spray deposition.The effects of Mg and Cu contents on the aging behaviors of the whole precipitation process of the alloys were systematically investigated.The results show that the primary precipitates in the under-aged and peak-aged alloys are GPⅡ and η'phases;no GPⅠ zones were observed.During aging,the dissolution driving force of the precipitates increases with increasing Mg content;therefore,the volume fraction of precipitates in the grain interior and the area fraction of precipitates at the grain boundary increase obviously,which contributes to a considerable improvement in yield strength and decrease in plasticity of the high Mg content alloys.Cu content has no apparent effect on the size and volume fraction of precipitates.However,a higher Cu content can effectively prevent coarsening and transformation of precipitates,which is beneficial to maintain the peak aging state of the alloys.This research provides a basis for the composition optimization of the rapid-solidified highly alloying Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys.