Effects of heat treatment process for blanket fabrication on mechanical properties of F82H

Hirose, Takanori; Shiba, Kiyoyuki; Sawai, Tomotsugu; Jitsukawa, Shiro; Akiba, Masato

Reduced activation ferritic/martensitic steel, RAFs is the leading candidates for the structural materials of breeding blankets. HIP is examined as a near-net-shape fabrication process for this structure. The HIP requires heating above the normalizing temperature and the final microstructural features depends on the HIP processing conditions. Conventional HIP process caused a prior-austenite grain (PAG) coarsening of RAFs and subsequent increase of ductile brittle transition temperature. Japanese RAFs F82H and its modified steels were investigated by metallurgical method after isochronal heat treatment up to 1473K simulating HIP equivalent thermal hysteresis. Although Conventional F82H IEA heat showed significant grain growth after conventional solid HIP conditions (1313K 2hr.), F82H with 0.1wt.% tantalum kept fine grain after the same heat treatment. On the other hands, conventional RAF/Ms with coarse grain were recovered by the post HIP normalizing at temperature below TaC dissolution temperature. This process can refine the PAG size of F82H more than ASTM grain size number 7.