Evaluation of radiation damage using nonlinear ultrasound

Nonlinear ultrasound was used to monitor radiation damage in two reactor pressure vessel (RPV) steels. The microstructural changes associated with radiation damage include an increase in dislocation density and the formation of precipitates, and nonlinear ultrasonic waves are known to be sensitive to such changes. Six samples each of two different types of RPV steel were previously irradiated in the Rheinsberg power reactor to two fluence levels, up to 1020 n/cm2. Longitudinal waves were used to measure the acoustic nonlinearity in these samples, and the results show a clear increase in the measured acoustic nonlinearity from the unirradiated state to the medium dose, and then a decrease from medium dose to high dose.