Preparation of ultrafine-grained/nanostructured tungsten materials: An overview

Tungsten has been considered as one of suitable candidate as plasma-facing material for the first wall of fusion devices. However, the application of tungsten in fusion reactions presents risk because of the brittleness, high ductile-brittle transition temperature, and other defects of tungsten materials. Studies have shown that ultrafine-grained/nanostructured tungsten materials can improve these problems. In its first part this article describes the powder metallurgy techniques for the preparation of ultrafine-grained/nanostructured tungsten. And the second part of this article reviews bulk processes for the preparation. The possibility of preparing ultrafine-grained/nanostructured tungsten and referenceable process parameters are described. By describing the mechanical properties and irradiation performance of ultrafine-grained/nanostructured tungsten, the research prospects and development directions of tungsten materials for fusion reactors are indicated. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.