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Conference Article: The Use Of X-Ray Microtomography To Determine Relationships Between Microstructure and Mechanical Behaviour of Nuclear Graphite

Laurent Babout, Andrew Hodgkins, Richard Dewhurst, T.James Marrow, Paul M. Mummery, School of Materials, University of Manchester, Manchester, UNITED KINGDOM; Alex Fok, Barry Marsden, The Manchester School of Engineering, University of Manchester, Manchester, UNITED KINGDOM

Abstract

X-ray microtomography (XMT) has been used to characterise the microstructure and density distribution in thermally-oxidised Pile Grade A (PGA) graphite in 3-D. The needle coke filler particles can be clearly distinguished from the binder phase. Quantitative measurements of density showed that thermal oxidation occurred predominantly in the binder phase. The spatial distribution of large-scale porosity was determined. The Young’s modulus and thermal diffusivity of specimens of virgin and nominally 15% and 30% weight loss graphite were measured. It was demonstrated that weight loss calculations do not necessarily reflect the degree of oxidation and material removal throughout the bulk of the specimen. Relationships between microstructure, bulk density, and the mechanical properties were determined.

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key words: Gas Cooled Reactor, Nuclear Technology
Reference:
Proceedings of the Conference on High Temperature Reactors, Beijing, China, September, 22-24, 2004
International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna (Austria)
HTR-2004, pp:1-10