Deuterium Profilemetry and Diffusion Coefficient in Electrocharged Stainless Steel

摘要

The method of nuclear microanalysis using the reaction D(d,p)T is used to measure concentration-depth profiles of deuterium in austenitic Type 310 stainless steel electrocharged in 1 N D sub 2 SO sub 4 with arsenic poison at room temperature. The influence of aging after charging is examined. A near-surface density of 0.6 deuterium atoms per metal atom (i.e., 38 at. %) is found for the initially charged condition. Associated with this high gas concentration is considerable microstructural damage. An analysis of the deuterium depth profiles yields a room-temperature diffusion coefficient for deuterium of 1.4 x 10 exp -16 m exp 2 s exp -1 at high concentrations which is consistent with extrapolation of higher-temperature data available from other techniques for annealed material. At lower deuterium concentrations, < 10 exp -2 , in the aged material the extracted diffusion coefficient is a factor of three higher, implying a dependence on concentration. At concentrations < 10 exp -3 , diffusion may be hindered by dislocation trapping. (ERA citation 06:001055)