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Title: Heat exchanger life extension via in-situ reconditioning

Abstract

A method of in-situ reconditioning a heat exchanger includes the steps of: providing an in-service heat exchanger comprising a precipitate-strengthened alloy wherein at least one mechanical property of the heat exchanger is degraded by coarsening of the precipitate, the in-service heat exchanger containing a molten salt working heat exchange fluid; deactivating the heat exchanger from service in-situ; in a solution-annealing step, in-situ heating the heat exchanger and molten salt working heat exchange fluid contained therein to a temperature and for a time period sufficient to dissolve the coarsened precipitate; in a quenching step, flowing the molten salt working heat-exchange fluid through the heat exchanger in-situ to cool the alloy and retain a supersaturated solid solution while preventing formation of large precipitates; and in an aging step, further varying the temperature of the flowing molten salt working heat-exchange fluid to re-precipitate the dissolved precipitate.

Inventors:
;
Issue Date:
Research Org.:
Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE
OSTI Identifier:
1259496
Patent Number(s):
9,377,245
Application Number:
13/833,357
Assignee:
UT-Battelle, LLC (Oak Ridge, TN)
DOE Contract Number:  
AC05-00OR22725
Resource Type:
Patent
Resource Relation:
Patent File Date: 2013 Mar 15
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
24 POWER TRANSMISSION AND DISTRIBUTION; 32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION; 36 MATERIALS SCIENCE

Citation Formats

Holcomb, David E., and Muralidharan, Govindarajan. Heat exchanger life extension via in-situ reconditioning. United States: N. p., 2016. Web.
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Holcomb, David E., & Muralidharan, Govindarajan. Heat exchanger life extension via in-situ reconditioning. United States.
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Holcomb, David E., and Muralidharan, Govindarajan. Tue . "Heat exchanger life extension via in-situ reconditioning". United States. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1259496.
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@article{osti_1259496,
title = {Heat exchanger life extension via in-situ reconditioning},
author = {Holcomb, David E. and Muralidharan, Govindarajan},
abstractNote = {A method of in-situ reconditioning a heat exchanger includes the steps of: providing an in-service heat exchanger comprising a precipitate-strengthened alloy wherein at least one mechanical property of the heat exchanger is degraded by coarsening of the precipitate, the in-service heat exchanger containing a molten salt working heat exchange fluid; deactivating the heat exchanger from service in-situ; in a solution-annealing step, in-situ heating the heat exchanger and molten salt working heat exchange fluid contained therein to a temperature and for a time period sufficient to dissolve the coarsened precipitate; in a quenching step, flowing the molten salt working heat-exchange fluid through the heat exchanger in-situ to cool the alloy and retain a supersaturated solid solution while preventing formation of large precipitates; and in an aging step, further varying the temperature of the flowing molten salt working heat-exchange fluid to re-precipitate the dissolved precipitate.},
doi = {},
journal = {},
number = ,
volume = ,
place = {United States},
year = {2016},
month = {6}
}
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Works referenced in this record:

Microstructural and microchemical mechanisms controlling intergranular stress corrosion cracking in light-water-reactor systems
journal, October 1994

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