Results of in-pile SCC growth tests in high temperature water at JMTR

Tsukada, Takashi ; Kaji, Yoshiyuki  ; Ugachi, Hirokazu ; Nagata, Nobuaki*; Dozaki, Koji*; Takiguchi, Hideki*

Irradiation assisted stress corrosion cracking (IASCC) has been recognized as the aging issue of core-internal materials of the light water reactors (LWRs). The synergistic effect of neutron/ radiation, stress and high temperature water on the materials in the reactor core is significant to understand IASCC behavior. Therefore, the in-pile IASCC testing is one of the key experiments to investigate IASCC mechanism, and also to assess the reliability of the PIE data. A high temperature water loop facility was installed at the Japan Materials Testing Reactor (JMTR) to carry out the in-pile IASCC testing. Using the loop facility, in-pile IASCC growth tests have been successfully carried out in the irradiation capsule under simulated BWR condition. The results showed that the effect of synergy of neutron/ radiation and stress/water environment on SCC growth rate was considered to be small within the present test conditions.