Over the past decade, we have developed deterministic models for predicting materials damage due to stress corrosion cracking (SCC) in boiling water reactor (BWR) primary coolant circuits. These steady-state models have been applied to fixed state points of reactor operation to yield electrochemical corrosion potential (ECP) and crack growth rate (CGR) predictions. However, damage is cumulative, so that prediction of the extent of damage at any given time must integrate crack growth rate over the history of the plant. In this paper, we describe the use of the REMAIN code to predict the accumulated damage functions for major components in the coolant circuit of a typical BWR that employs internal coolant pumps. As an example, the effect of relatively small amounts of hydrogen added to the feedwater (e.g., 0.5 ppm) on the development of damage from a 0.197-in. (0.5-cm) intergranular crack located at the exit of an internal pump was analyzed. It is predicted that hydrogen additions to the feedwater will effectively suppress further growth of the crack. We also report the first predictions of the accumulation of damage from SCC for a variable power operating cycle. We predict that the benefits of hydrogen water chemistry (HWC), as indicated by the behavior of a single crack under constant environmental conditions, are significantly muted by changes in reactor power. [S0094-9930(00)01301-9]
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February 2000
Technical Papers
Prediction of Materials Damage History From Stress Corrosion Cracking in Boiling Water Reactors
Iouri Balachov,
Iouri Balachov
Center for Advanced Materials, Pennsylvania State University, 517B Deike Building, University Park, PA 16802
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Digby Macdonald,
Digby Macdonald
Center for Advanced Materials, Pennsylvania State University, 517B Deike Building, University Park, PA 16802
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Bernhard Stellwag,
Bernhard Stellwag
Power Generation Group (KWU), Siemens AG, D-91050 Erlangen, Germany
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Norbert Henzel,
Norbert Henzel
Power Generation Group (KWU), Siemens AG, D-91050 Erlangen, Germany
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Renate Kilian
Renate Kilian
Power Generation Group (KWU), Siemens AG, D-91050 Erlangen, Germany
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Iouri Balachov
Center for Advanced Materials, Pennsylvania State University, 517B Deike Building, University Park, PA 16802
Digby Macdonald
Center for Advanced Materials, Pennsylvania State University, 517B Deike Building, University Park, PA 16802
Bernhard Stellwag
Power Generation Group (KWU), Siemens AG, D-91050 Erlangen, Germany
Norbert Henzel
Power Generation Group (KWU), Siemens AG, D-91050 Erlangen, Germany
Renate Kilian
Power Generation Group (KWU), Siemens AG, D-91050 Erlangen, Germany
Contributed by the Pressure Vessels and Piping Division and presented at the Pressure Vessels and Piping Conference, San Diego, California, July 26–30, 1998, of THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERS. Manuscript received by the PVP Division, September 16, 1998; revised manuscript received October 11, 1999. Associate Technical Editor: D. M. Fryer.
J. Pressure Vessel Technol. Feb 2000, 122(1): 45-49 (5 pages)
Published Online: October 11, 1999
Article history
Received:
September 16, 1998
Revised:
October 11, 1999
Citation
Balachov , I., Macdonald , D., Stellwag , B., Henzel , N., and Kilian , R. (October 11, 1999). "Prediction of Materials Damage History From Stress Corrosion Cracking in Boiling Water Reactors ." ASME. J. Pressure Vessel Technol. February 2000; 122(1): 45–49. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.556148
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