Fracture Mechanism of Borated Stainless Steel

The mechanical properties and fracture mechanism of irradiated and unirradiated boron containing Type 304 stainless steel are studied. Four different batches with different boron weight percentages are used. One of these batches was manufactured by a conventional wrought technique, while the others were manufactured by a powder metallurgy technique. The irradiated specimens were subjected to a fluence level of 5 × 10¹⁹ or 1 × 10²¹ n/m². The mechanical and fracture tests were performed at temperatures of 233, 298, and 533 K. No significant effects on the mechanical properties or fracture behavior were observed as a result of neutron irradiation and/or temperature. The ductility and toughness of the borated steel were found to decrease with increasing boron content. The effect of boride on void nucleation and linkage was found to play an important role in the fracture behavior of borated steel.