Summary of Mercury Compatibility Issues for the Spallation Neutron Source Target Containment and Ancillary Equipment

The purpose of this document is to summarize the primary results of the Hg compatibility research in support of the SNS target. In the absence of possible synergisms resulting from beam/irradiation effects, wetting of 316L/316LN stainless steel under SNS conditions by the Hg target is expected to be very limited. As a result, significant interactions such as dissolution, mass transfer, and embrittlement affecting general compatibility are not anticipated. A wide range of experiments on 316L/316LN stainless steel, including thermal convection and pumped loops, confirmed low corrosion/penetration rates in Hg up to 305 C and little or no wetting or mass transfer below about 250 C. A variety of standard mechanical tests comparing behavior of 316L in air and Hg revealed limited wetting and no degradation of mechanical properties such as reduced elongation or development of brittle fracture features. Preliminary fatigue tests indicated a negative effect (reduced cycles to failure and intergranular cracking) at very high loads for 316LN, but little or no effect at more modest loading. Annealed 316LN was found to be somewhat susceptible to cavitation-erosion damage, but significant improvement was realized with a kolsterizing surface treatment or coldworking the material. Within the scope of these test conditions, no compatibility-limited operations were identified for type 316L/316LN stainless steel (and variations thereof) as the Hg target containment material. More limited compatibility data on other materials are also reported