CAVITATION DAMAGE MEASUREMENTS IN MERCURY BY RADIOTRACER ANALYSIS. Technical Report No. 10
The development of a method of continuous measurement of the wear of metal specimens submitted to a constant cavitation field by using radiotracer techniques was attempted. Samples of type 302 stainless steel and type 1010 carbon steel were irradiated in a nuclear reactor and then placed in a cavitating venturi in a closed-loop mercury facility. It was discovered that due to the arrangement of the centrifugal pump, the radioactive particles of steel separate at once and tend to be trapped on the liquid surface of the pump sump. By dismantling this sump, about 6% of the measured weight loss of the carbon steel specimens was recovered. This radioactive material was collected and filtered, which allowed a classification by size with the following results: 68.95% of the material was retained on a 53 micron filter, 30.75% was retained on a 10 micron filter, and 0.307% was retained on a 2 micron filter. These results were obtained by comparison of the activity of the debris with the activity of a standard sample prepared from the original irradiated specimen. Differential curves obtained for the different size debris indicate that the constituents do not vary with particle size. On the assumption that the particles are spheres, it was found that the size distribution of the debris recovered was as follows: 6000 particles with a diameter of 53 microns, 14,750 with an average diameter of 30 microns, and 18,400 with an average diameter of 6 microns. Very few particles exceed a diameter of 80 microns (3.15 mils) and very few have a dimension of less than 6 microns (.236 mils). (auth)
- Research Organization:
- Michigan. Univ., Ann Arbor. Coll. of Engineering
- NSA Number:
- NSA-18-008483
- OSTI ID:
- 4112117
- Report Number(s):
- NP-13517; ORA-03424-10-T
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: Orig. Receipt Date: 31-DEC-64
- Country of Publication:
- Country unknown/Code not available
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
CARBON STEELS
CAVITATION
COOLANT LOOPS
DIAGRAMS
EROSION
FAILURES
FILTERS
FLUID FLOW
GRAIN SIZE
IRRADIATION
LIQUID FLOW
LIQUIDS
MEASURED VALUES
MERCURY
METALS
NOZZLES
PARTICLES
PUMPS
RADIOACTIVITY
REACTORS
SPHERES
STAINLESS STEELS
STANDARDS
SURFACES
TRACER TECHNIQUES
TUBES
VENTURI TUBES
WEAR
WEIGHT