Strength and toughness improvement of low-alloy steel for nuclear applications

Low carbon low alloy steels are used in nuclear power plants as pressure vessel, steam generator, etc. Nuclear pressure vessel material requires good combination of strength/ toughness, good weldability and high resistance to neutron irradiation and corrosion fatigue. For SA508III steels, most widely used in the production of nuclear power plant, attaining good toughness prior to service is one of the utmost designing goals. This work has been carried out by the combination of thermodynamic calculation, microstructural observation and evaluation of designed alloy, and the evaluation of HAZ characteristics. In this work, the means of alloy design developed in the previous study were adopted. Cr/Mo contents was controlled and Ni contents was increased to improve toughness. High toughness values were obtained in designed low carbon steels, with higher strength level than that of SA508III steels. A high CVN energy of 220J was obtained at -100 .deg. C, and a low DBTT of about-100 .deg. C was obtained in 60Cr alloy prepared in this work. 38 refs., 61 figs., 32 tabs. (Author)