Deuterium erosion and retention properties on MoAlB ceramics by ion irradiation

Mo(W)AlB with outstanding neutron shielding capacities, good resistance to high temperature oxidation and thermal shock, is considered as a promising neutron shielding material for applications in fusion reactors. The deuterium (D) erosion and retention properties on the surface of Mo(W)AlB under D ion irradiation were firstly investigated by experiments and theoretical simulation in this work, and compared with metallic tungsten (W). The results show that the total erosion depth of Mo(W)AlB is comparable to Mo(W) when they were irradiated at 500 and 300 eV, and lower D retention than W was found. There was no D blister or crack occurs on its surface whereas W does under same irradiation because of relatively low anisotropic swelling and very high hardness respectively linked to the stress expansion for MoAlB compared to W. Through this work, Mo(W)AlB is expected to be a good candidate as a neutron shielding material in a compact fusion reactor.