TENSILE PROPERTIES OF A TITANIUM MODIFIED AUSTENITIC STAINLESS STEEL AND THE WELD JOINTS AFTER NEUTRON IRRADIATION

摘要

Tensile specimens of a titanium modified austenitic stainless steel and its weldments fabricated with Tungsten Inert Gas (TIG) and Electron Beam (EB) welding techniques were irradiated to a peak dose of 19 dpa and a peak helium level of 250 appm in the temperature range between 200 and 400°C in spectrally tailored capsules in the Oak Ridge Research Reactor (ORR) and the High Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR). The He/dpa ratio of about 13 appm/dpa is similar to the typical helium/dpa ratio of a fusion reactor environment. The tensile tests were carried out at the irradiation temperature in vacuum. The irradiation caused an increase in yield stress to levels between 670 and 800 MPa depending on the irradiation temperature. Total elongation was reduced to less than 10%, however the specimens failed in a ductile manner. The results were compared with those of the specimens irradiated using irradiation capsules producing larger amount of He. Although the He/dpa ratio affected the microstructural change, the impact on the post irradiation tensile behavior was rather small not only for base metal specimens but also for the weld joint and the weld metal specimens.