D.J. Alexander

Low temperature aging behavior of type 308 stainless steel weld metal

Abstract The aging behavior of welded type 308 stainless steel was evaluated by mechanical property testing and microstructural examination. Aging was carried out at 475°C for up to 20,000 h. The initial material consisted of austenite with approximately 10% ferrite. Upon aging, the ferrite hardness increased up to 100%. This hardening was accompanied by a noticeable increase in the ductile—brittle transition temperature and a drop in the upper shelf energy, as measured by Charpy impact tests, and a degradation in fracture toughness, as determined by J-integral test. Tensile properties did not change significantly with aging. Microstructural analysis indicated that the ferrite decomposed spinodally into iron-rich α and chromium-enriched α′. In addition, abundant precipitation of nickel- and silicon-rich G-phase was found within the ferrite and M23C6 carbide formed along the austenite-ferrite interface. These effects are similar to the aging behavior of cast stainless steels. Occasionally, large G-phase or α precipitates were also found along the austenite-ferrite interface after aging more than 1000 h. After comparison of the mechanical property changes with the microstructural features, it was concluded that both spinodal decomposition as well as G-phase formation contribute to ferrite hardening. Spinodal decomposition results in embrittlement of the weld insofar as the ductile-brittle transition temperature is raised. G-phase formation and carbide precipitation are associated with a degradation in the ductile fracture properties, as shown by a drop in the upper shelf energy and a decrease in the fracture toughness.

Austenitic stainless steels and high strength copper alloys for fusion components

Abstract An austenitic stainless steel (316LN), an oxide-dispersion-strengthened copper alloy (GlidCop Al25), and a precipitation-hardened copper alloy (Cu–Cr–Zr) are the primary structural materials for the ITER first wall/blanket and divertor systems. While there is a long experience of operating 316LN stainless steel in nuclear environments, there is no prior experience with the copper alloys in neutron environments. The ITER first wall (FW) consists of a stainless steel shield with a copper alloy heat sink bonded by hot isostatic pressing (HIP). The introduction of bi-layer structural material represents a new materials engineering challenge; the behavior of the bi-layer is determined by the properties of the individual components and by the nature of the bond interface. The development of the radiation damage microstructure in both classes of materials is summarized and the effects of radiation on deformation and fracture behavior are considered. The initial data on the mechanical testing of bi-layers indicate that the effectiveness of GlidCop Al25 as a FW heat sink material is compromised by its strongly anisotropic fracture toughness and poor resistance to crack growth in a direction parallel to the bi-layer interface.

Embrittlement of CrMo steels after low fluence irradiation in HFIR

Abstract Subsize Charpy impact specimens of 9Cr1MoVNb (modified 9Cr1Mo) and 12Cr1MoVW (Sandvik HT9) steels and 12Cr1MoVW with 2% Ni (12Cr1MoVW2Ni) were irradiated in the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) at 300 and 400°C to damage levels up to 2.5 dpa. The objective was to study the effect of the simultaneous formation of displacement damage and transmutation helium on impact toughness. Displacement damage was produced by fast neutrons, and helium was formed by the reaction of 58 Ni with thermal neutrons in the mixed-neutron spectrum of HFIR. Despite the low fluence relative to previous irradiations of these steels, significant increases in the ductile-brittle transition temperature (DBTT) occurred. The 12Cr1MoVW2Ni steel irradiated at 400°C had the largest increase in DBTT and displayed indications of intergranular fracture. A mechanism is proposed to explain how helium can affect the fracture behavior of this latter steel in the present tests, and how it affected all three steels in previous experiments, where the steels were irradiated to higher fluences.

Embrittlement of 9Cr-1MoVNb and 12Cr-1MoVW steels irradiated in HFIR☆

Abstract Charpy impact specimens of 9Cr-1MoVNb and 12Cr-1MoVW steels and these steels with 2% Ni (9Cr-1MoVNb-2Ni and 12Cr-1MoVW-2Ni) were irradiated in the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) at 300°C up to 34 dpa and at 400°C to 42 dpa. Nickel was added to study the simultaneous effect of displacement damage and transmutation helium on toughness. Displacement damage is produced by fast neutrons and helium is produced by the reaction of 58Ni with thermal neutrons in the mixed spectrum of HFIR. Irradiation caused large increases in the ductile-brittle transition temperature (DBTT) of all four steels. The saturation in the shift in DBTT with fluence that has been observed in such steels irradiated in fast reactors does not apply to specimens irradiated in HFIR. Shifts in DBTT of over 300°C were observed at 400°C for 9Cr-1MoVW-2Ni and 12Cr-1MoVW-2Ni; shifts of over 200°C were observed for the standard steels. The shifts are the largest ever recorded for this type of steel and are attributed to the high helium concentrations (up to 400 appm).

Fracture toughness and tensile behavior of ferritic-martensitic steels irradiated at low temperatures

Abstract Disk compact tension and sheet tensile specimens of the ferritic-martensitic steels F82H and Sandvik HT-9 were irradiated in the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) at 90°C and 250°C to neutron doses of 1.5–2.5 dpa. For both steels, radiation hardening was accompanied by a reduction in strain hardening capacity (SHC). When combined with other literature data it is apparent that severe loss of SHC occurs in F82H for irradiation temperatures below ∼400°C and in HT-9 for irradiation temperatures below ∼250°C. For both alloys, severe loss of SHC does not correlate with brittle behavior during fracture toughness testing.

Development of low-chromium, chromium-tungsten steels for fusion

Abstract High-chromium (9–12% Cr) CrMo and CrW ferritic steels are favored as candidates for fusion applications. In early work to develop reduced-activation steels, an Fe2.25Cr2W-0.25V-O.1C steel (designated 2.25Cr-2WV) had better strength than an Fe9Cr2W-0.25V-0.07Tra-0.1C (9Cr-2WVTa) steel (compositions are in weight percent). However, the 2.25Cr-2WV had poor impact properties, as determined by the ductile-brittle transition temperature and upper-shelf energy of subsize Charpy impact specimens. Because low-chromium steels have some advantages over high-chromium steels, a program to develop low-chromium steels is in progress. Microstructural analysis indicated that the reason for the inferior impact toughness of the 2.25Cr-2WV was the granular bainite obtained when the steel was normalized. Properties can be improved by developing an acicular bainite microstructure by increasing the cooling rate after austenitization. Alternatively, acicular bainite can be promoted by increasing the hardenability. Hardenability was changed by adding small amounts of boron and additional chromium to the 2.250-2WV composition. A combination of B, Cr, and Ta additions resulted in low-chromium reduced-activation steels with mechanical properties comparable to those of 9Cr-2WVTa.

Effects of low temperature neutron irradiation on deformation behavior of austenitic stainless steels

Abstract Two experiments have been conducted to quantify the effects of neutron irradiation on the deformation and fracture behavior of solution annealed austenitic stainless steels irradiated to doses ranging from 3 to 19 dpa at temperatures from 60 to 400°C. For all alloys, yield strength increases rapidly with dose in the 60–300°C regime. Radiation hardening is accompanied by changes in the flow properties with the appearance of an initial yield drop and a significant reduction in strain hardening capacity. The magnitude of the changes is dependent upon both neutron dose and irradiation temperature, with reductions in strain hardening capacity occurring most rapidly in the range 250–350°C. It is shown that for neutron doses up to about 3 dpa, although the changes in deformation mode reduce the fracture thoughness, the toughness remains satisfactorily high.

Fracture toughness of copper-base alloys for fusion energy applications

Abstract Oxide-dispersion strengthened copper alloys and a precipitation-hardened copper–nickel–beryllium alloy showed a significant reduction in toughness at elevated temperatures (250°C) as compared to room temperature. This decrease in toughness was much larger than would be expected from the relatively modest changes in the tensile properties over the same temperature range. However, a copper–chromium–zirconium alloy strengthened by precipitation showed only a small decrease in toughness at the higher temperatures. The embrittled alloys showed a transition in fracture mode, from transgranular microvoid coalescence at room temperature to intergranular with localized ductility at high temperatures. The Cu–Cr–Zr alloy maintained the ductile microvoid coalescence failure mode at all test temperatures.

Embrittlement of austenitic stainless steel welds

To prevent hot-cracking, austenitic stainless steel welds generally contain a small percent of delta ferrite. Although ferrite has been found to effectively prevent hot-cracking, it can lead to embrittlement of welds when exposed to elevated temperatures. The aging behavior of type-308 stainless steel weld has been examined over a range of temperatures 400–850‡C for times up to 10,000 hr. Upon aging, and depending on the temperature range, the unstable ferrite may undergo a variety of solid state transformations. These phase changes affect creep-rupture and Charpy impact properties.

Impact behavior of 9-Cr and 12-Cr ferritic steels after low-temperature irradiation

Abstract Miniature Charpy impact specimens of 9Cr-1MoVNb and 12Cr-1MoVW steels and these steels with 1 and 2% Ni were irradiated in the High-Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR) at 50°C to displacement damage levels of up to 9 dpa. Nickel was added to study the effect of transmutation helium. Irradiation caused an increase in the ductile-brittle transition temperature (DBTT). The 9Cr-1MoVNb steels, with and without nickel, showed a larger shift than the 12Cr-1MoVW steels, with and without nickel. The results indicated that helium also increased the DBTT. The same steels were previously irradiated at higher temperatures. From the present and past tests, the effect of irradiation temperature on the DBTT behavior can be evaluated. For the 9Cr-1MoVNb steel, there is a continuous decrease in the magnitude of the DBTT increase up to an irradiation temperature of about 400°C, after which the shift drops rapidly to zero at about 450°C. The DBTT of the 12Cr-1MoVW steel shows a maximum increase at an irradiation temperature of about 400°C and less of an increase at either higher or lower irradiation temperatures.