Analysis of Material Properties of Aged Rigid Polyurethane Foam
- Savannah River Site (SRS), Aiken, SC (United States); Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL), Aiken, SC (United States)
Polyurethane foams are organic materials which can be classified as mechanically rigid or flexible. They are chemically inert, relatively unaffected by the presence of water (cracking, swelling, absorption), and can be manufactured in densities from 3-40 lb/ft3. In addition, polyurethane foams have exceptional mechanical and thermal properties, which support use of polyurethane foams in the 9977 shipping packages. These packages are designed for shipment of special nuclear material and are approved for storage in the K-area complex (KAC) at Savannah River Site. Through the analysis of conditioned foams, a service life ofFR-3700 can be estimated for the storage of the 9977 packages. Thus, considering anticipated temperatures of the 9977 packages in the KAC, FR-3700 was conditioned at 160°F, 185°F, 215°F, 250°F, and 160°F with 50% relative humidity, which remains within the service temperature of-320°F - 250°F of the FR-3700 foam in the 9977 packages. Prior studies have analyzed foams after 7, 20, and 30 months of conditioning with the current study analyzing foams up to 55 months of conditioning. Considering the limited information on the effects of radiation on FR-3700, samples were irradiated with a cobalt-60 source at a high and low dose rate of 90.9 krad/hr and 16.67 krad/hr, respectively, to examine the effects of irradiation and dose rate on thermal properties. It was found that foams conditioned up to 55 months had comparable heat capacity values to FR-3700, with a slight increase due to humidity. Results suggest that fire additives began decomposing at higher conditioning temperatures, reducing the average percent mass loss. Overall, irradiation and humidity had minimal effects on thermal properties of FR-3700.
- Research Organization:
- Savannah River Site (SRS), Aiken, SC (United States); Savannah River National Laboratory (SRNL), Aiken, SC (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Environmental Management (EM)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC09-08SR22470
- OSTI ID:
- 1545502
- Report Number(s):
- SRNL-STI-2019-00436
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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