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Conference Article: Irradiation dimensional stability of graphite containing green coke filler

Kalyagina, I.P.; Virgiliev, Yu.S

Abstract

The graphite based on green petroleum coke belongs to the strongest carbons prepared according to the conventional electrode technology. The use of this coke favors the development of a monolithic structure having no strict boundary between the cone filler grains and the coked binder, which affects the dimensional stability of the articles made of such graphite. The dimensional stability under irradiation of fine grained graphite and coarse grained graphite based on green petroleum coke as well as that of reactor graphite were investigated. The comparison of the properties of reactor graphite and coarse grained graphite showed that the use of such technology enabled to obtain the materials of a similar crystalline structure perfection as seen from the close values of graphitizability, lattice parameters and the dimensions of coherent scattering areas. The main distinction between them was in the indices of anisotropy and density. The coarse grained graphite has the much lower level of porosity and higher density. According to the irradiation experiment, the relative dimensional change of fine and coarse grained graphites based on green coke was larger than that of reactor graphite at low irradiation temperature. In the irradiation at 720 K, the shrinkage of reactor graphite was large.

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key words: coke; graphite; high temperature; length; neutron beams; neutron fluence; physical properties; physical radiation effects; porosity; reactor materials; temperature dependence; beams; carbon; dimensions; particle beams; radiation effects
Reference:
Specialists' meeting on graphite component structural design, JAERI Tokai (Japan), September 8-11, 1986
International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna (Austria). International Working Group on Gas-Cooled Reactors
IWGGCR--11, pp:213-216