Effects of silicon, carbon and molybdenum additions on IASCC of neutron irradiated austenitic stainless steels

Nakano, Junichi; Miwa, Yukio; Koya, Toshio ; Tsukada, Takashi 

To study effects of minor elements on the irradiation assisted stress corrosion cracking (IASCC), high purity Type 304 and 316 stainless steels (SSs) were fabricated and added minor elements, Si or C. After neutron irradiation to 3.510n/m (E1MeV), the slow strain rate tests (SSRT) for the irradiated specimens was conducted in oxygeneted high purity water at 561 K. Fracture surface of the specimens was examined using the scanning electron microscope (SEM) after the SSRT. Fraction of intergranular stress corrosion cracking (IGSCC) on the fracture surface after the SSRT increased with netron fluence. Suppression of irradiation hardening and increase of peiod to SCC fracture as benefitical effects of the additional elements, Si or Mo, were not observed obviously. In high purity SS added C, fraction of IGSCC was the smallest in the all SSs, although irraidiation hardening level was the largest in the all SSs. Addition of C suppressed the susceptibility to IGSCC.