Irradiation accelerated fluoride molten salt corrosion of nickel-based UNS N10003 alloy revealed by X-ray absorption fine structure

Helium ion irradiation accelerating molten salt corrosion of nickel-based UNS N10003 alloy was noted for severely dissolving of chromium element. X-ray absorption fine structure was applied to investigate irradiation effect on chromium microchemistry. In molten salt environment, neighbor atoms around chromium element are significantly reduced in the irradiated & corroded alloy, compared with those in the corroded alloy. Specially, the Cr-O and Cr3+ were detected, indicating the formation of Cr(III)-containing oxides. It can be ascribed to irradiation induced the diffusion of the electrons around the Cr atoms and more reactive of Cr, which revealed irradiation accelerating corrosion at atomic scale.