TY - JOUR A1 - Was, G.S. A1 - Bahn, C.-B. A1 - Busby, J. A1 - Cui, B. A1 - Farkas, D. A1 - Gussev, M. A1 - Rigen He, M. A1 - Hesterberg, J. A1 - Jiao, Z. A1 - Johnson, D. A1 - Kuang, W. A1 - McMurtrey, M. A1 - Robertson, I. A1 - Sinjlawi, A. A1 - Song, M. A1 - Stephenson, K. A1 - Sun, K. A1 - Swaminathan, Srinivasan A1 - Wang, M. A1 - West, E. T1 - How irradiation promotes intergranular stress corrosion crack initiation N2 - Irradiation assisted stress corrosion cracking (IASCC) is a form of intergranular stress corrosion cracking that occurs in irradiated austenitic alloys. It requires an irradiated microstructure along with high temperature water and stress. The process is ubiquitous in that it occurs in a wide range of austenitic alloys and water chemistries, but only when the alloy is irradiated. Despite evidence of this degradation mode that dates back to the 1960s, the mechanism by which it occurs has remained elusive. Here, using high resolution electron backscattering detection to analyze local stress-strain states, high resolution transmission electron microscopy to identify grain boundary phases at crack tips, and decoupling the roles of stress and grain boundary oxidation, we are able to unfold the complexities of the phenomenon to reveal the mechanism by which IASCC occurs. The significance of the findings impacts the mechanical integrity of core components of both current and advanced nuclear reactor designs worldwide. KW - Irradiation KW - Stress corrosion cracking KW - Grain boundaries KW - Oxidation KW - Austenitic alloys PY - 2024 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b43-595748 SN - 0079-6425 VL - 143 SP - 1 EP - 15 PB - Elsevier AN - OPUS4-59574 LA - eng AD - Bundesanstalt fuer Materialforschung und -pruefung (BAM), Berlin, Germany ER -