Environmentally assisted cracking in light water reactors

Topics that have been investigated during this year include (1) SCC of A533-Gr B steel used in steam generator and reactor pressure vessels, (2) fatigue of Type 316NG SS, and (3) SCC of Type 347 and CF-3 cast duplex stainless steels in simulated BWR water. Crack-growth-rate (CGR) tests were performed on a composite A533-Gr B/Inconel-182 specimen in which the stress corrosion crack in the Inconel-182 weld metal penetrated and grew into the A533-Gr B steel. CGR tests were also conducted on conventional (unplated) and nickel- or gold-plated A533-Gr B specimens to provide insight into whether the nature of the surface layer on the low-alloy steel, either oxide corrosion products or a noble metal, influences the overall SCC process. CGR data on the A533-Gr B specimens were compared with the fatigue crack reference curves in the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, Section XI, Appendix A. Fatigue tests were conducted on Type 316NG SS in air and simulated BWR water at low strain ranges and frequencies to better establish margins in the ASME Code Section III Fatigue Design Curves. CGR tests were also conducted on specimens of Type 347 SS with different heat-treatment conditions, and a specimen of CF-3 cast stainless steel with a ferrite content of 15.6%. The results were compared with previous data on another heat of Type 347 SS, which was very resistant to SCC, and a CF-3M steel with a ferrite content of 5%