TENSILE AND CHARPY IMPACT PROPERTIES OF IRRADIATED REDUCED-ACTIVATION FERRITIC STEELS

摘要

Tensile tests were conducted on eight reduced-activation Cr-W steels after irradiation to 15-17 and 26-29 dpa, and Charpy impact tests were conducted on the steels irradiated to 26-29 dpa. Irradiation was in the Fast Flux Test Facility at 365°C on steels containing 2.25-12% Cr, varying amounts of W, V, and Ta, and 0.1%C. Previously, tensile specimens were irradiated to 6-8 dpa and Charpy specimens to 6-8, 15-17, and 20-24 dpa. Tensile and Charpy specimens were also thermally aged to 20000 h at 365 °C. Thermal aging had little effect on the tensile behavior or the ductile-brittle transition temperature (DBTT), but several steels showed a slight increase in the upper-shelf energy (USE). After ≈7 dpa, the strength of the steels increased and then remained relatively unchanged through 26-29 dpa (i.e., the strength saturated with fluence). Post-irradiation Charpy impact tests after 26-29 dpa showed that the loss of impact toughness, as measured by an increase in DBTT and a decrease in the USE, remained relatively unchanged from the values after 20-24 dpa, which had been relatively unchanged from the earlier irradiations. As before, the two 9Cr steels were the most irradiation resistant.