Static tests of energy-absorbing characteristics of 304 stainless steel fins

Four stainless steel specimens representative of possible fin configurations on a shipping cask for spent reactor fuel rods are tested to determine their potential usefulness as part of the cask impact limiter system. The specimens included a simple, straight fin, a fin with thin periodic lateral stiffeners, a fin with larger lateral stiffeners and a cylindrical shell whose axis is normal to the cask surface. Results in the form of load-deflection curves show that the addition of lateral stiffeners can greatly enhance the fin's energy-absorbing capability. The cylindrical specimen was by far the most efficient, absorbing more than twice as much energy per unit volume as any of the other specimens