ASAXS AND SANS INVESTIGATIONS OF THE CHEMICAL-COMPOSITION OF IRRADIATION-INDUCED PRECIPITATES IN NUCLEAR PRESSURE-VESSEL STEELS

A combination of small angle neutron scattering and anomalous small angle X-ray scattering was employed to determine the chemical composition of the irradiation-induced precipitates in the 15Kh2MFA steel. The intensity variation at X-ray energies near to the V-K-absorption edge proves that the precipitates are vanadium rich. No Cr or Mn were detected in the precipitates. Results of the magnetic contrast variation in the small angle neutron scattering experiments show that the precipitates could be vanadium rich carbides or Fe-V particles.