Sensitivity Analyses for a PWR SCC Case Using the Probabilistic Loss-of-Coolant-Accident (Pro-LOCA) Software

As a means of demonstrating compliance with the United States Code of Federal Regulations 10CFR50 Appendix A, General Design Criterion 4 (GDC-4) requirement that primary piping systems for nuclear power plants exhibit an extremely low probability of rupture, probabilistic fracture mechanics (PFM) software has become increasingly popular. One of these PFM codes for nuclear piping is Pro-LOCA which has been under development over the last decade. Currently, Pro-LOCA is being enhanced under an international cooperative program entitled PARTRIDGE-II (Probabilistic Analysis as a Regulatory Tool for Risk-Informed Decision GuidancE - Phase II). This paper focuses on the use of a pre-defined set of base-case inputs along with prescribed variation in some of those inputs to determine a comparative set of sensitivity analyses results. The benchmarking case was a circumferential Primary Water Stress Corrosion Crack (PWSCC) in a typical PWR primary piping system. The effects of normal operating loads, temperature, leak detection, inspection frequency and quality, and mitigation strategies on the rupture probability were studied. The results of this study will be compared to the results of other PFM codes using the same base-case and variations in inputs. This study was conducted using Pro-LOCA version 4.1.9.

Assessing the Condition and Estimating the Remaining Lives of Pressure Components in a Methanol Plant Reformer: Part 1 — NDE

Statoil Tjelbergodden operates a 2,400 ton/day methanol plant in Norway. In order to assess the condition and reliability of high temperature components within the reformer, a series of advanced non-destructive examination (NDE) technologies were applied to radiant catalyst tubes, outlet pigtails, and outlet collection headers. The inspection techniques were selected and developed to provide data that could easily be used in the engineering assessment of the high-temperature components. Special focus was given to detecting and quantifying high-temperature creep damage. This paper describes the NDE techniques that were employed and provides examples of typical data obtained by using the techniques. Catalyst tubes were inspected using the H SCAN® (Figure 1) multiple sensor technology. This technique utilizes two types of ultrasonic sensors, eddy current sensors, laser measurements, and elevation location sensors in scanning each catalyst tube. The H SCAN® P-CAT™ (Figure 2) technique is applied to outlet pigtails, while the H SCAN® H-CAT™ (Figure 3) technique is applied to outlet headers.

Fracture-Mechanics Analysis of the Reactor Pressure Vessel Beznau 1 Based on Thermal-Hydraulics Input Data From KWU-MIX and CFD Analyses

The integrity of a reactor pressure vessel (RPV) has to be ensured throughout its entire life in accordance with the applicable regulations. Typically an assessment of the RPV against brittle failure needs to be conducted by taking into account all possible loading cases. One of the most severe loading cases, which can potentially occur during the operating time, is the loss-of-coolant accident, where cold water is injected into the RPV nearly at operating conditions. High pressure in combination with a thermal shock of the ferritic pressure vessel wall caused by the injection of cold water leads to a considerable load at the belt-line area known as Pressurized Thermal Shock (PTS). Usually the assessment against brittle failure is based on a deterministic fracture-mechanics analysis, in which common parameters like J-integral or stress intensity factor are employed to calculate the load path for an assumed (postulated) flaw during the PTS event. The most important input data for the fracture-mechanics analysis is the transient thermal-hydraulics (TH) load of the RPV during the emergency cooling. Such data can be calculated by analytical fluid-mixing codes verified on experiments, such as KWU-MIX, or by numerical Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) tools after suitable validation. In KWU-MIX, which is the standard used for TH calculations within PTS analyses, rather conservative analytical models for the quantification of mixing and, depending on the water level, condensation processes in the downcomer (including simplified stripe and plume formations) are utilized. On the contrary, the numerical CFD tools can provide best-estimate results due to the possibility to consider more realistically the stripe and plume formations as well as the geometry of the RPV in detail. In order to quantify the safety margin inherent to the standard approach, two fracture-mechanics analyses of the RPV Beznau 1 based on thermal-hydraulic input data from KWU-MIX and CFD analyses were performed. Subsequently the resulting loading paths were compared between each other and with material properties obtained from the irradiation surveillance program of the RPV to demonstrate the exclusion of brittle-fracture initiation.

Role of Long Term Ageing on the Creep Life of Type 316H Austenitic Stainless Steel Bifurcation Weldments

Intergranular creep cracks have been observed in the heat affected zone of the 316H austenitic stainless steel superheater boiler tube bifurcation weldments after long term service at temperature of ∼550°C. The cracking mechanism is believed to be creep dominated. Moreover, chemical composition of defective material compared with similar uncracked components suggests that composition influences susceptibility to creep cracking. A systematic characterization of ratios number of creep cavities/grain boundary length and inter-granular precipitation length/grain boundary length has been undertaken in HAZ of three samples extracted from plants with different specific compositions. Here, the role of precipitation on creep deformation and fracture is explored. Precipitates of both ferrite and M23C6 carbide arising from long term service and associated creep cavitation have been identified using transmission electron microscopy. The creep damage and cracking, and therefore overall service life creep, is discussed by consideration of susceptibility of creep cavity nucleation and subsequently growth arising from specific differences in the chemical composition of the three boiler tube bifurcations.

Comparison of BS 7910 and API 579-1/ASME FFS-1 Solutions With Regards to Leak-Before-Break

One of the ways to aid the decision whether or not to live with defects in pressurised components is through the demonstration of Leak-Before-Break (LBB). In this paper, three of the main solutions to carry out the LBB assessment, namely Stress Intensity Factor (SIF), Reference Stress (RS) and Crack Opening Area (COA) have been evaluated and compared for both BS 7910 and API 579/ASME FFS-1 standards. Differences with respect to the choice of solutions and boundary conditions are illustrated and discussed. The same applied loads and material properties have been used when applying each procedure. Different geometries for potential pressurised components which are of interest with regards to LBB have been considered for each solution. Focus is made on cylinders where axially and circumferentially oriented through-wall and surface cracks were analysed. While SIF solutions produce similar results for both standards, reference stress solutions show greater differences in the results. However, in LBB assessments it is the reference stress solution which is more relevant, since most LBB assessments pre-suppose the material to be ductile. In terms of COA, solutions are not given exactly equivalent, however they seem to agree well within the common range of applicability. Differences in the assessment route between the standards is also discussed. Experimental data from literature has also been compared to the different standard predictions, to illustrate the accuracy of the solutions for axially oriented surface cracks. The ability of solutions to predict the boundary between leak and break is discussed, in relation to how this shows the level of conservatism.

Grade 11 High Temperature Steam Header Case History and Benchmark

The cost and complexity of design method validation at the component level makes actual and comprehensive benchmark cases challenging to obtain. This is especially true of elevated temperature design methods where component and material response is complicated by time-dependent creep and possibly creep-fatigue behavior. To support current Design-by-Analysis modernization development within Section I of the ASME Boiler & Pressure Vessel Code, service examples that are comprehensive enough to allow method validation, while still being tractable in complexity have been identified. To this end, the case history of a Grade 11 high temperature steam outlet header that was retired after 23 of years of service is presented. Detailed damage and deformation information is available which allows validation of creep material models, as well as future evaluation of candidate elevated temperature design method performance.

A Study of the Stress Intensity Factor and Crack Opening Displacement Relationship Between Uniform Thickness Pipe Bends and Non-Uniform Thickness Pipe Bends

This paper proposes the relationship of stress intensity factor and crack opening displacement between pipe bends with uniform thickness and those with non-uniform thickness. In actual case, pipe bends have thickness variations. Unlike typical pipe bends, heat induction bend pipes have significant thickness variations (non-uniform thickness) because of manufacturing process. When the ratio of radius of curvature and pipe radius is 3 for heat induction bend pipes, the thickness at intrados and extrados can be calculated by 1.75 times and 0.875 times of nominal thickness which is original thickness before manufacturing process, respectively. In this situation, it is difficult to apply existing elastic stress intensity factor and crack opening displacement results [1, 2] and it is essential to modify existing solution or to create new solution. In this paper, to find effect of pipe bends thickness variation, 90° through-wall cracked pipe bends with not only uniform thickness but also non-uniform thickness are considered. The ratios of radius and thickness are 5, 10 and ratios of pipe radius of curvature and radius are 3, 4 and 5. Loading condition is in-plane opening bending for intrados crack and closing bending for extrados crack. The through-wall crack sizes are 12.5%, 25% and 37.5% of circumferential cross section. Material of pipe bends is assumed to follow elastic behavior. The proposal is made by extensive finite elements analyses using ABAQUS [3], predicted elastic stress intensity factors for pipe bends with non-uniform thickness are compared with finite element results. The results show a good agreement. It may be useful to calculate elastic stress intensity factor for bends with non-uniform thickness without complex modeling and finite analyses.

Impact Toughness for PM HIP 316L at Cryogenic Temperatures

It is well known throughout the PM HIP (Powder Metallurgy Hot Isostatic Pressing) industry that PM HIPed 316L material in general exhibit higher strength than conventional 316L. However, previous studies have shown an uncharacteristic behavior in impact toughness properties at cryogenic temperatures compared to conventional forged material. The uncharacteristic behavior consists of unexpectedly large drop in impact toughness at cryogenic temperatures which is not seen in the same extent in conventional material e.g. forged 316L. With the recent code case approval for PM HIPed 316L material, this behavior can be seen as an uncertainty regarding the performance of the material and its use in nuclear applications can therefore become limited. The behavior and underlying mechanisms is yet to be explained in detail. One possible explanation is that it is caused by oxides in the material, of which a large amount originates from oxygen picked up by the very large surface area of the powder during the manufacturing process. The correlation between impact toughness at room temperature and oxygen content is often referred to. In this study the non-metallic inclusion content is correlated to the impact properties at −196°C (−321°F), and a suggested explanation for the behavior of PM HIP 316L/316LN vs. conventional 316L is presented. The size and number of inclusions constitutes a major difference between the PM HIPed and conventional material. The results show that the size of the inclusions is significantly smaller in the PM materials compared to the conventional material and as a consequence they are present in larger numbers in the PM materials. Furthermore, the results clearly show the correlation between inclusion content and the impact toughness at cryogenic temperatures. The correlation is not as clear at room temperature where the different materials behave more similar. The suggested explanation is further supported by literature on cryogenic properties of 316L/316LN, 316L weld material and PM HIP 316LN with greatly reduced oxygen content. The impact toughness testing was performed using instrumented test equipment capable of recording load vs. displacement during testing. From this data the crack propagation and crack initiation energy can be estimated. Furthermore, it is known that grain size can influence mechanical properties. In this study no clear relationship between impact toughness and grain size could be observed. However, a correlation between the grain size and the amount of inclusions in the material was observed. It was found that larger amounts of inclusions in the PM HIPed material are correlated to a finer grain size. The results indicate that the inclusion particles inhibit grain growth during the HIP and heat treatment process by pinning of grain boundaries.

Simulation on Propagation and Coalescence of Fatigue Crack by Automatic Three-Dimensional Finite Element Crack Propagation System

Verification analyses of the CRACK-FEM developed to predict the propagation of age-related cracks detected in complicated-shaped components of nuclear power plants are presented. Four fatigue crack propagation tests for plate specimens with one and two initial surface cracks subjected to cyclic tensile and bending load respectively are simulated using the CRACK-FEM, and the analysis results are compared with the experimental data of the tests in literature. For the specimens with one crack, the relation between the number of load cycles and the crack size obtained by the analyses agrees with the experimental data. For the specimens with two cracks, the analysis results until the crack coalescence and the timing of the crack coalescence obtained by the analyses agree with the experimental data. In tensile fatigue test for specimen with two cracks, the relation between the number of load cycles and the crack size after the crack coalescence obtained by the analysis almost agrees with the experimental data, although a little difference of analysis from the experimental data is seen. However, in bending fatigue test for specimen with two cracks, the analysis results for all the number of load cycles show good agreement with the experimental data.

Fatigue Crack Growth Analysis of Interacting Subsurface Cracks Using S-Version FEM

Fatigue crack growth simulation using the s-version finite element method (FEM) is presented. Two subsurface cracks are aligned in the depth direction of a specimen, and is subjected to a cyclic tension-tension loading. The fatigue crack growth behavior of the cracks is directly simulated using our automatic fatigue crack growth simulation system with the s-version FEM. Along with the direct simulation, proximity rules for crack combinations and surface cracks are used in the s-version FEM simulation. The numerical results with and without the application of the proximity rules are compared to make a validation of the application of the proximity rules in the evaluation of fatigue crack growth behaviors and residual fatigue life. The results clearly illustrate that the proximity rules accelerate the fatigue crack growth rate, and provide us with a substantially conservative evaluation. Finally, the proximity rules are slightly modified for making better approximation of combining and surface cracks. It can be found that the new proximity rules are able to give a fatigue crack growth evaluation closer to the direct simulation results.