Effect of irradiation temperature on void swelling of China Low Activation Martensitic steel (CLAM)

CLAM is one composition of a Reduced Activation Ferritic/Martensitic steel (RAFM), which is being studied in a number of institutes and universities in China. The effect of electron-beam irradiation temperature on irradiation swelling of CLAM was investigated by using a 1250 kV High Voltage Electron Microscope (HVEM). In-situ microstructural observations indicated that voids formed at each experimental temperature − 723 K, 773 K and 823 K. The size and number density of voids increased with increasing irradiation dose at each temperature. The results show that CLAM has good swelling resistance. The maximum void swelling was produced at 723 K; the swelling was about 0.3% when the irradiation damage was 13.8 dpa.