Corrosion behavior of ion-irradiated 12Cr2W2Mn F/M steel in liquid LBE

The corrosion characteristics of 12Cr2W2Mn Ferritic/martensitic (F/M) steel before and after Au-ions irradiation in static lead–bismuth eutectic (LBE) have been investigated at 400 °C for 100 h. The results show that the samples without irradiation have many unequal size Fe 3 O 4 particles and little Cr-rich oxide after LBE corrosion test, and the thickness of corrosion layer is 4.4 μm. The irradiation samples display plenty compact triangular (Fe,Cr) 3 O 4 and some Cr-rich oxide, and the thickness of corrosion layer is 4.4 μm with some cracks. Au-ions irradiation enahnced the LBE corrosion of F/M steel, which could be attributed to the irradiation defects provide diffusion path of O atoms in liquid LBE. A schematic model was presented to understand the effect of irradiation damage on LBE corrosion behavior of F/M steel.