Computer Programs for Calculating Thermal Distribution on Uranium-6 Weight Percent Niobium Alloy During Electron-Beam Welding

摘要

Two computer programs (TEMP and PEAK) were generated to predict the thermal history and peak temperature at a specified point on a plate of uranium-6 wt % niobium (U-6Nb) alloy during electron-beam (EB) welding. The TEMP program predicts the thermal history of a point fairly accurately, but the predicted cooling rates are a little fast. The heat input efficiency of the electron beam was found to be around 55 percent. The PEAK program was designed to predict peak temperatures; however, an increase in heat transfer efficiency was found as distance from the weld fusion boundary increases, indicating an error which is probably due to the lack of a correction factor for specific heat values. (ERA citation 08:033974)