Abstract
The effect of dissolved hydrogen (DH) on primary water stress corrosion cracking of nickel base alloys has been of intense interest for plant operators worldwide. In this study, crack growth rates of Alloy 600 were measured in simulated PWR primary coolant at 330 °C with DH levels of 5, 16, 45 and 75 cc H2/kg H2O, respectively. The oxide films formed in the crack tip regions were examined using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The results show low and similar crack growth rates at all DH levels, without a maximum at 16 cc H2/kg H2O. The low DH content favors nickel oxide formation at the crack tip region, whereas the high DH level favors Me3O4 type spinel formation. Also, the oxide films were found to grow epitaxially on some metal grain surfaces in the cracks. The possible effects of alloy composition on the oxide films formed, and the effect of DH on the crack growth are briefly discussed.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
A. Molander, K. Norring, P.-O. Andersson, P. Efsing, Effects of water chemistry on PWSCC initiation and propagation in Alloy 600. Eurocorr Stockholm (2012)
A. Molander, K. Norring, P.-O. Andersson, P. Efsing, Effects of water chemistry on PWSCC initiation and propagation in Alloy 600, in 15th Internat Symp on Environmental Degradation of Materials in Nuclear Power Systems—Water Reactors. TMS (2011)
T. Cassagne et al., An update on the influence of hydrogen on the PWSCC of nickel base alloys in high temperature water, in 8th Internat Symposium on Environmental Degradation of Materials in Nuclear Power Systems, Proceedings of ANS (1997), pp. 307–315
D. Morton, S. Attanasio, E. Richey, G. Young, Search of the True Temperature and Stress Intensity Factor Dependencies for PWSCC, in 12th International Symposium on Environmental Degradation of Materials in Nuclear Power Systems—Water Reactors. TMS, (2005)
P. Andresen, R. Reid, J. Wilson, SCC Mitigation of Ni Alloys and Weld Metals by Optimizing Dissolved H2, in 14th Internat Symp on Environmental Degradation of Materials in Nuclear Power Systems—Water Reactors, Virginia Beach, VA, August (2009)
J. Chen, TEM-lamella lift-out from the crack tip region of Alloy 600 for high resolution electron microscopy examination. Research report of Swedish Radiation Safety Authority. Report number: 2015:07 ISSN: 2000-045. (2015). Available at www.stralsakerhetsmyndigheten.se
J. Hickling, Materials reliability program (MRP) crack growth rates for evaluating primary water stress corrosion cracking (PWSCC) of thick-wall Alloy 600 materials (MRP–55NP) Revision 1. EPRI Palo Alto CA 1006695, (2002)
J. Chen, F. Lindberg, D. Wells, B. Bengtsson, EELS and electron diffraction studies on possible bonaccordite crystals in PWR fuel CRUD and in oxide films of Alloy 600 material. Nucl. Eng. Technol. 49(4) (2017)
Acknowledgements
This work would not be possible without the contributions from several people and organizations. All their contributions are gratefully acknowledged. In particular, Dr. A. Riazanova and Professor L, Belova at Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden, prepared the TEM Lamellas for this work. Many colleagues at Studsvik Nuclear AB helped with daily experimental maintenance during the course of the experimental work. Financial support by Ringhals AB and Swedish Radiation Safety Authority is also gratefully acknowledged.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2019 The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society
About this paper
Cite this paper
Stjärnsäter, J., Chen, J., Lindberg, F., Ekström, P., Efsing, P. (2019). Effect of Dissolved Hydrogen on the Crack Growth Rate and Oxide Film Formation at the Crack Tip of Alloy 600 Exposed to Simulated PWR Primary Water. In: Jackson, J., Paraventi, D., Wright, M. (eds) Proceedings of the 18th International Conference on Environmental Degradation of Materials in Nuclear Power Systems – Water Reactors. The Minerals, Metals & Materials Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-04639-2_27
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-04639-2_27
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-04638-5
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-04639-2
eBook Packages: Chemistry and Materials ScienceChemistry and Material Science (R0)