Through-Thickness Microstructure Characterization in a Centrifugally Cast Austenitic Stainless Steel Nuclear Reactor Primary Loop Pipe Using Time-of-Flight Neutron Diffraction
The US code of Federal Regulations mandates regular inspection of centrifugally cast austenitic stainless steel pipe, commonly used in primary cooling loops in light-water nuclear power plants. These pipes typically have a wall thickness of ~8 cm. Unfortunately, inspection using conventional ultraso...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-05-01
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| Series: | Quantum Beam Science |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2412-382X/5/2/12 |
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| author | Matthew M. Schmitt Daniel J. Savage James J. Wall John D. Yeager Chanho Lee Sven C. Vogel |
| author_facet | Matthew M. Schmitt Daniel J. Savage James J. Wall John D. Yeager Chanho Lee Sven C. Vogel |
| author_sort | Matthew M. Schmitt |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The US code of Federal Regulations mandates regular inspection of centrifugally cast austenitic stainless steel pipe, commonly used in primary cooling loops in light-water nuclear power plants. These pipes typically have a wall thickness of ~8 cm. Unfortunately, inspection using conventional ultrasonic techniques is not reliable as the microstructure strongly attenuates ultrasonic waves. Work is ongoing to simulate the behavior of acoustic waves in this microstructure and ultimately develop an acoustic inspection method for reactor inspections. In order to account for elastic anisotropy in the material, the texture in the steel was measured as a function of radial distance though the pipe wall. Experiments were conducted on two 10 × 12.7 × 80 mm radial sections of a cast pipe using neutron diffraction scans of 2 mm slices using the HIPPO time-of-flight neutron diffractometer at the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE, Los Alamos, NM, USA). Strong textures dominated by a small number of austenite grains with their (100) direction aligned in the radial direction of the pipe were observed. ODF analysis indicated that up to 70% of the probed volume was occupied by just three single-grain orientations, consistent with grain sizes of almost 1 cm. Texture and phase fraction of both ferrite and austenite phases were measured along the length of the samples. These results will inform the development of a more robust diagnostic tool for regular inspection of this material. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T11:39:38Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ee54cd5f1a5746d897341734916cabd3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2412-382X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T11:39:38Z |
| publishDate | 2021-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Quantum Beam Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-ee54cd5f1a5746d897341734916cabd32023-11-21T18:37:58ZengMDPI AGQuantum Beam Science2412-382X2021-05-01521210.3390/qubs5020012Through-Thickness Microstructure Characterization in a Centrifugally Cast Austenitic Stainless Steel Nuclear Reactor Primary Loop Pipe Using Time-of-Flight Neutron DiffractionMatthew M. Schmitt0Daniel J. Savage1James J. Wall2John D. Yeager3Chanho Lee4Sven C. Vogel5Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545, USALos Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545, USANuclear & Radiological Engineering, Electric Power Research Institute, Charlotte, NC 28262, USALos Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545, USALos Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545, USALos Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM 87545, USAThe US code of Federal Regulations mandates regular inspection of centrifugally cast austenitic stainless steel pipe, commonly used in primary cooling loops in light-water nuclear power plants. These pipes typically have a wall thickness of ~8 cm. Unfortunately, inspection using conventional ultrasonic techniques is not reliable as the microstructure strongly attenuates ultrasonic waves. Work is ongoing to simulate the behavior of acoustic waves in this microstructure and ultimately develop an acoustic inspection method for reactor inspections. In order to account for elastic anisotropy in the material, the texture in the steel was measured as a function of radial distance though the pipe wall. Experiments were conducted on two 10 × 12.7 × 80 mm radial sections of a cast pipe using neutron diffraction scans of 2 mm slices using the HIPPO time-of-flight neutron diffractometer at the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center (LANSCE, Los Alamos, NM, USA). Strong textures dominated by a small number of austenite grains with their (100) direction aligned in the radial direction of the pipe were observed. ODF analysis indicated that up to 70% of the probed volume was occupied by just three single-grain orientations, consistent with grain sizes of almost 1 cm. Texture and phase fraction of both ferrite and austenite phases were measured along the length of the samples. These results will inform the development of a more robust diagnostic tool for regular inspection of this material.https://www.mdpi.com/2412-382X/5/2/12cast austenitic stainless steelnon-destructive evaluationtexture |
| spellingShingle | Matthew M. Schmitt Daniel J. Savage James J. Wall John D. Yeager Chanho Lee Sven C. Vogel Through-Thickness Microstructure Characterization in a Centrifugally Cast Austenitic Stainless Steel Nuclear Reactor Primary Loop Pipe Using Time-of-Flight Neutron Diffraction Quantum Beam Science cast austenitic stainless steel non-destructive evaluation texture |
| title | Through-Thickness Microstructure Characterization in a Centrifugally Cast Austenitic Stainless Steel Nuclear Reactor Primary Loop Pipe Using Time-of-Flight Neutron Diffraction |
| title_full | Through-Thickness Microstructure Characterization in a Centrifugally Cast Austenitic Stainless Steel Nuclear Reactor Primary Loop Pipe Using Time-of-Flight Neutron Diffraction |
| title_fullStr | Through-Thickness Microstructure Characterization in a Centrifugally Cast Austenitic Stainless Steel Nuclear Reactor Primary Loop Pipe Using Time-of-Flight Neutron Diffraction |
| title_full_unstemmed | Through-Thickness Microstructure Characterization in a Centrifugally Cast Austenitic Stainless Steel Nuclear Reactor Primary Loop Pipe Using Time-of-Flight Neutron Diffraction |
| title_short | Through-Thickness Microstructure Characterization in a Centrifugally Cast Austenitic Stainless Steel Nuclear Reactor Primary Loop Pipe Using Time-of-Flight Neutron Diffraction |
| title_sort | through thickness microstructure characterization in a centrifugally cast austenitic stainless steel nuclear reactor primary loop pipe using time of flight neutron diffraction |
| topic | cast austenitic stainless steel non-destructive evaluation texture |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2412-382X/5/2/12 |
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