Helium effects on microstructural evolution in tempered martensitic steels: In situ helium implanter studies in HFIR

Microstructural evolutions in tempered martensitic steels (TMS) under neutron-irradiation, at fusion relevant He/dpa ratios and dpa rates, were characterized using a novel in situ He-implanter technique. F82H-mod3 was irradiated at 500 °C in HFIR to a nominal 9 dpa and 190 or 380 appm He in both in the as-tempered (AT) and 20% cold-worked (CW) conditions. In all cases, a high number density of 1–2 nm He-bubbles were observed, along with fewer but larger ≈10 nm void-like faceted cavities. The He-bubbles form preferentially on dislocations and various interfaces. A slightly larger number of smaller He bubbles were observed in the CW condition. The lower He/dpa ratio produced slightly smaller and fewer He-bubbles. Comparisons of these observations to the results in nano-structured ferritic alloy (NFA) MA957 provide additional evidence that TMS may be susceptible to He-embrittlement as well as void swelling at fusion relevant He concentrations, while NFA are much more resistant to these degradation phenomena.