The stability of matrix graphite under neutron irradiation and in corrosive environments is crucial for the safe operation of molten salt reactors(MSRs).Raman spectroscopy and a slow positron beam were employed to investigate the effects of He ion irradiation fluences and subsequent annealing on the microstructure and defects of the matrix graphite.He ions with 500 keV energy and fluences ranging from 1.1×10^(15)ions∕cm^(2)to 3.5×10^(17)ions∕cm^(2)were used to simulate neutron irradiation at 300 K.The samples with an irradiation fluence of 3.5×10^(16)ions∕cm^(2)were subjected to isochronal annealing at different temperatures(573 K,873 K and 1173 K)for 3 h.The Raman results revealed that the D peak gradually increased,whereas the intrinsic G peak decreased with increasing irradiation fluence.At the same irradiation fluence,the D peak gradually decreased,whereas the intrinsic G peak increased with increasing annealing temperature.Slow positron beam analysis demonstrated that the density or size of irradiation defects(vacancy type)increased with higher irradiation fluence,but decreased rapidly with increasing annealing temperature.The Raman spectral analysis of sample cross sections subjected to high irradiation fluences revealed the emergence of amorphization precisely at the depth where ion damage was most pronounced,whereas the surface retained its crystalline structure.Raman and positron annihilation analyses indicated that the matrix graphite exhibited good irradiation resistance to He ions at 300 K.However,vacancy-type defects induced by He ion irradiation exhibit poor thermal stability and can be easily removed during annealing.
In this study,a novel microwave-water cooling-assisted mechanical rock breakage method was proposed to address the issues of severe tool wear at elevated temperatures,poor rock microwave absorption,and excessive microwave energy consumption.The investigation object was sandstone,which was irradiated at 4 kW microwave power for 60 s,180 s,300 s,and 420 s,followed by air and water cooling.Subsequently,uniaxial compression,Brazilian tension,and fracture tests were conducted.The evolution of damage in sandstone was measured using active and passive nondestructive acoustic detection methods.The roughness of the fracture surfaces of the specimens was quantified using the box-counting method.The damage mechanisms of microwave heating and water cooling on sandstone were discussed from both macroscopic and microscopic perspectives.The experimental results demonstrated that as the duration of the microwave irradiation increased,the P-wave velocity,uniaxial compressive strength(UCS),elastic modulus(E),tensile strength,and fracture toughness of sandstone exhibited various degrees of weakness and were further weakened by water cooling.Furthermore,an increase in the microwave irradiation duration enhanced the damaging effect of water cooling.The P-wave velocity of the sandstone was proportional to the mechanical parameters.Microwave heating and water cooling weakened the brittleness of the sandstone to a certain extent.The fractal dimension of the fracture surface was correlated with the duration of microwave heating,and the water-cooling treatment resulted in a rougher fracture surface.An analysis of the instantaneous cutting rate revealed that water cooling can substantially enhance the efficiency of microwave-assisted rock breakage.
As a multipurpose research reactor,fission molybdenum-technetium irradiation production is one of the wide applications of China Advanced Research Reactor CARR.The goal of this study is to achieve“online loading and unloading”of the target during fission molybdenum-99(99Mo)to technetium-99m(99mTc)irradiation production without affecting the normal reactor operation and other irradiation channels,which will make CARR more efficient in performing irradiation tasks.This paper introduces the design principles,requirements and concept structural design of the irradiation device of fission 99Mo-99mTc.
