Letter Report Documenting Progress of Second Generation ATF FeCrAl Alloy Fabrication

Development of the 2nd generation ATF FeCrAl alloy has been initiated, and a candidate alloy was selected for trial tube fabrication through hot-extrusion and gun-drilling processes. Four alloys based on Fe-13Cr-4.5Al-0.15Y in weight percent were newly cast with minor alloying additions of Mo, Si, Nb, and C to promote solid-solution and second-phase precipitate strengthening. The alloy compositions were selected with guidance from computational thermodynamic tools. The lab-scale heats of ~ 600g were arc-melted and drop-cast, homogenized, hot-forged and -rolled, and then annealed producing plate shape samples. An alloy with Mo and Nb additions (C35MN) processed at 800°C exhibits very fine sub-grain structure with the sub-grain size of 1-3μm which exhibited more than 25% better yield and tensile strengths together with decent ductility compared to the other FeCrAl alloys at room temperature. It was found that the Nb addition was key to improving thermal stability of the fine sub-grain structure. Optimally, grains of less than 30 microns are desired, with grains up to and order of magnitude in desired produced through Nb addition. Scale-up effort of the C35MN alloy was made in collaboration with a commercial cast company who has a capability of vacuum induction melting. A 39lb columnar ingot with ~81mm diameter and ~305mm height (with hot-top) was commercially cast, homogenized, hot-extruded, and annealed providing 10mm-diameter bar-shape samples with the fine sub-grain structure. This commercial heat proved consistent with materials produced at ORNL at the lab-scale. Tubes and end caps were machined from the bar sample and provided to another work package for the ATF-1 irradiation campaign in the milestone M3FT-14OR0202251.