Abstract
The phase transformations in an as-received Zr-2.5Nb pressure tube material were characterized in detail by neutron diffraction. The texture and volume fraction of α and β phases were measured on heating at eight different temperatures 373 K to 1323 K (100 °C to 1050 °C) traversing across the α/(α + β) and (α + β)/β solvus lines, and also upon cooling at 1173 K and 823 K (900 °C and 550 °C). The results indicate that the α-phase texture is quite stable, with little change in the {0002} and \( \left\{ {11\bar{2}0} \right\} \) pole figures during heating to 1123 K (850 °C). The β-phase volume fraction increased while a slight change in texture was observed until heating reached 973 K (700 °C). On further heating to 1173 K (900 °C), there appears a previously unobserved α-phase texture component due to coarsening of the prior primary α grains; meanwhile the transformed β-phase texture evolved markedly. At 1323 K (1050 °C), the α phase disappeared with only 100 pct β phase remaining but with a different texture than that observed at lower temperatures. On cooling from the full β-phase regime, a different cooldown transformed α-phase texture was observed, with no resemblance of the original texture observed at 373 K (100 °C). The transformed α-phase texture shows that the {0002} plane normals are within the radial-longitudinal plane of the pressure tube following the Burgers orientation relationship of (110)bcc//(0002)hcp and \( [\bar{1}11]_{\text{bcc}} //[11\bar{2}0]_{\text{hcp}} \) with a memory of the precursor texture of the primary α grains observed on heating at 1173 K (900 °C).
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Notes
CANDU® (CANada Deuterium Uranium) is a registered trademark of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited.
ZIRCALOY is a trademark of Westinghouse Electric Company, Pittsburgh, PA.
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Acknowledgments
This work has benefited from the use of the Manuel Lujan, Jr. Neutron Scattering Center at LANSCE, which is funded by the United States Department of Energy Office of Basic Energy Sciences, under Contract No. DE-AC52-06NA25396. The assistance of Dr. D. Sediako (NRC–Chalk River) is gratefully acknowledged. We thank Professor Wenk for useful comments on ODF data calculations in MAUD program. Thanks are due to K.V. Kidd for the reversed bend sample of an as-received pressure tube material used in this study, and also to Dr. O.T. Woo for providing TEM micrographs. Useful comments from Researcher Emeritus Dr. C.E. Coleman are much appreciated.
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Manuscript submitted February 24, 2011.
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Fong, R.W.L., Miller, R., Saari, H.J. et al. Crystallographic Texture and Volume Fraction of α and β Phases in Zr-2.5Nb Pressure Tube Material During Heating and Cooling. Metall Mater Trans A 43, 806–821 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-011-0914-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-011-0914-6