Erickson, Marjorie A | Search NASA

DOE OSTI2013

Radiation Embrittlement Archive Project

The Radiation Embrittlement Archive Project (REAP), which is being conducted by the Probabilistic Integrity Safety Assessment (PISA) Program at Oak Ridge National Laboratory under funding from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission s (NRC) Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research, aims to provide an archival source of information about the effect of neutron radiation on the properties of reactor pressure vessel (RPV) steels. Specifically, this project is an effort to create an Internet-accessible RPV steel embrittlement database. The project s website, https://reap.ornl.gov, provides information in two forms: (1) a document archive with surveillance capsule(s) reports and related technical reports, in PDF format, for the 104 commercial nuclear power plants (NPPs) in the United States, with similar reports from other countries; and (2) a relational database archive with detailed information extracted from the reports. The REAP project focuses on data collected from surveillance capsule programs for light-water moderated, nuclear power reactor vessels operated in the United States, including data on Charpy V-notch energy testing results, tensile properties, composition, exposure temperatures, neutron flux (rate of irradiation damage), and fluence, (Fast Neutron Fluence a cumulative measure of irradiation for E>1 MeV). Additionally, REAP contains data from surveillance programs conducted in other countries. REAP is presently being extended to focus on embrittlement data analysis, as well. This paper summarizes the current status of the REAP database and highlights opportunities to access the data and to participate in the project.

Klasky, Hilda B↗

DOE OSTI2012

A DISLOCATION-BASED CLEAVAGE INITIATION MODEL FOR PRESSURE VESSEL

Efforts are under way to develop a theoretical, multi-scale model for the prediction of fracture toughness of ferritic steels in the ductile-to-brittle transition temperature (DBTT) region that accounts for temperature, irradiation, strain rate, and material condition (chemistry and heat treatment) effects. This new model is intended to address difficulties associated with existing empirically-derived models of the DBTT region that cannot be extrapolated to conditions for which data are unavailable. Dislocation distribution equations, derived from the theories of Yokobori et al., are incorporated to account for the local stress state prior to and following initiation of a microcrack from a second-phase particle. The new model is the basis for the DISlocation-based FRACture (DISFRAC) computer code being developed at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). The purpose of this code is to permit fracture safety assessments of ferritic structures with only tensile properties required as input. The primary motivation for the code is to assist in the prediction of radiation effects on nuclear reactor pressure vessels, in parallel with the EURATOM PERFORM 60 project.

Cochran, Kristine B↗