Long-term embrittlement of cast duplex stainless steels in LWR systems

This progress report summarizes work performed by Argonne National Laboratory on longterm thermal embrittlement of cast duplex stainless steels in LWR systems during the six months from April--September 1992. A procedure and correlations are presented for predicting Charpy-impact energy, tensile flow stress, fracture toughness J-R curve, tearing modulus, and JIC of aged cast stainless steels from known material information. The ''saturation'' impact strength and fracture toughness of a specific cast stainless steel, i.e., the minimum value that would be achieved for the material after long-term service, is estimated from the chemical composition of the steel. Mechanical properties as a function of time and temperature of reactor service are estimated from impact energy and flow stress of the unaged material and the kinetics of embrittlement, which are also determined from chemical composition. The JIC values are determined from the estimated J-R curve and flow stress. Examples of estimating mechanical properties of cast stainless steel components during reactor service are presented. A common ''lower-bound'' J-R curve for cast stainless steels of unknown chemical composition is also defined for a given grade of steel, ferrite content, and temperature