Fracture Mechanism of Neutron Irradiated B₄C/Al Composite Material

To get the mechanical properties of B₄C/Al material, the tensile performance and hardness of neutron irradiated B₄C/Al were studied. Fracture appearance was investigated by scanning electron microscope. The result shows that irradiated Rockwell hardness was raised, and the yield and the tensile strength increased 37 MPa and 32 MPa, respectively. The elongation at break descended 3.6%. The B₄C/Al material was brittle fracture before and after irradiation. Dislocation density increased and aluminum atoms in the enrichment of boron carbide particles surface diffusion was a major cause for the mechanics performance improvement of the boron aluminum material.