Chromium doped tungsten alloy for plasma-facing components of fusion reactors formed by compression plasma flows

Abstract

Chromium doped tungsten (Cr-W) alloys are formed by compression plasma flows (CPFs) treatment at different absorbed energy densities (20 – 50 J/cm2), and are characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray microanalysis (EDX), and the Vickers hardness test. XRD analysis betokens that the dominant crystal orientation changes from (110) to (200) after CPFs treatment, and the intensity ratio (I200/I110) between the diffraction lines corresponding to (200) and (110) planes increases with an increase in the absorbed energy density. SEM and EDX analyses betoken spatial inhomogeneity at 20 J/cm2, improved uniformity at 30 J/cm2, and cracks at higher energy density. The hardness of the Cr–W alloy varies with absorbed energy density and has a maximum value of 379 HV at 20 J/cm2.