Evaluation of the thermal aging of δ-ferrite in austenitic stainless steel welds by electrochemical analysis

Abstract Cr-segregation by spinodal decomposition and G-phase precipitation were observed in δ-ferrite of austenitic stainless steel welds thermally aged at 400 °C for up to 20,000 h. A reversion heat treatment (R-HT) at 550 °C for 1 h dissolved the Cr-segregation in the aged welds while some intermetallic precipitates were present. The double-loop electrochemical potentiokinetic reactivation (DL-EPR) analysis showed no significant differences among them. However, after selective etching of the austenite phase, the DL-EPR values of δ-ferrite phase steadily increased with aging time due to the growth of Cr-depleted regions by spinodal decomposition. The electrochemical behavior of δ-ferrite after R-HT condition was similar to that of unaged welds, indicating the intermetallic precipitates did not affect the corrosion resistance in this case. Overall, DL-EPR analysis of δ-ferrite phase provided better correlation with spinodal decomposition

Strain-Rate Dependence of Tensile Behavior in Commercial-Grade Tungsten—Effect of Recrystallization Condition

The tensile deformation behavior of double-forged (DF-W) and recrystallized (RX-W) commercial-grade tungsten was investigated at 700 °C. With increasing strain rate, the dominant dynamic recrystallization (DRX) mechanism changes from continuous dynamic recrystallization (CDRX) to discontinuous dynamic recrystallization (DDRX). For DF-W, pre-existing sub-grains promote CDRX and associated a high-DRX fraction, resulting in reduced post-necking strain under a static condition. With increasing strain rate, a shift in the restoration mechanism from CDRX to DDRX contributes to the enhanced ductility in DF-W, while RX-W shows enhanced flow hardening without a loss of ductility. These results suggest that the strain-rate dependence of mechanical behavior depends on the initial microstructure

Multiscale simulations for estimating mechanical properties of ion irradiated 308 based on microstructural features

Austenitic stainless steel welds (ASSWs) of nuclear components undergo aging-related degradations caused by high temperature and neutron radiation. Since irradiation leads to the change of material characteristics, relevant quantification is important for long-term operation, but limitations exist. Although ion irradiation is utilized to emulate neutron irradiation, its penetration depth is too shallow to measure bulk properties. In this study, a systematic approach was suggested to estimate mechanical properties of ion irradiated 308 ASSW. First of all, weld specimens were irradiated by 2 MeV proton to 1 and 10 dpa. Microstructure evolutions due to irradiation in δ-ferrite and austenite phases were characterized and micropillar compression tests were performed. In succession, dislocation density based stress-strain (S–S) relationships and quantification models of irradiation defects were adopted to define phases in finite element analyses. Resultant microscopic S–S curves were compared to verify material parameters. Finally, macroscopic behaviors were calculated by multiscale simulations using real microstructure based representative volume element (RVE). Validity of the approach was verified for the unirradiated specimens such that the estimated S–S curves and 0.2% offset yield strengths (YSs) which was 363.14 MPa were in 10% agreement with test. For irradiated specimens, the estimated YS were 917.41 MPa in 9% agreement