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U.S. Department of Energy
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Long-term embrittlement of cast duplex stainless steels in LWR systems

Technical Report ·
DOI:https://doi.org/10.2172/5675829· OSTI ID:5675829
;  [1]
  1. Argonne National Lab., IL (USA)

This progress report summarizes work performed by Argonne National Laboratory on long-term embrittlement of cast duplex stainless steels in LWR systems during the six months from October 1988 to March 1989. Charpy-impact data are presented for several heats of cast stainless steel aged at temperatures between 320 and 450{degrees}C for times up to 30,000 h. Thermal aging decreases impact energy and shifts transition curves to higher temperatures. A saturation effect is observed for room-temperature impact energy and upper-self energy. Charpy data are analyzed to obtain the activation energy of the kinetics of embrittlement. The results suggest that the activation energy of embrittlement is not constant in the temperature range of 290--400{degrees}C, but increases as temperature decreases. A correlation is presented for estimating the extent of embrittlement of cast stainless steels from known material parameters. The degradation in mechanical properties can be reversed by annealing the embrittled material for 1 h at 550{degrees}C and then water quenching. 20 refs., 18 figs., 4 tabs.

Research Organization:
Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC (USA). Div. of Engineering; Argonne National Lab., IL (USA)
Sponsoring Organization:
NRC; Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC (USA)
DOE Contract Number:
W-31109-ENG-38
OSTI ID:
5675829
Report Number(s):
NUREG/CR-4744-Vol.4-No.1; ANL--90/44; ON: TI91012497
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English