Recommendations for the shallow-crack fracture toughness testing task within the HSST (Heavy-Section Steel Technology) Program

Abstract

Recommendations for Heavy-Section Steel Technology Program's investigation into the influence of crack depth on the fracture toughness of a steel prototypic of those in a reactor pressure vessel are included in this report. The motivation for this investigation lies in the fact that probabilistic fracture mechanics evaluations show that shallow flaws play a dominant role in the likelihood of vessel failure, and shallow-flaw specimens have exhibited an elevated toughness compared with conventional deep-notch fracture toughness specimens. Accordingly, the actual margin of safety of vessels may be greater than that predicted using existing deep-notch fracture-toughness results. The primary goal of the shallow-crack project is to investigate the influence of crack depth on fracture toughness under conditions prototypic of a reactor vessel. A limited data base of fracture toughness values will be assembled using a beam specimen of prototypic reactor vessel material and with a depth of 100 mm (4 in.). This will permit comparison of fracture-toughness data from deep-cracked and shallow-crack specimens, and this will be done for several test temperatures. Fracture-toughness data will be expressed in terms of the stress-intensity factor and crack-tip-opening displacement. Results of this investigation are expected to improve the understanding of shallow-flaw behavior in pressure vessels,more » thereby providing more realistic information for application to the pressurized-thermal shock issues. 33 refs., 17 figs.« less

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