中子注量率对低铜RPV钢辐照脆化效应的影响

Effect of Neutron Fluence Rate on Irradiation Embrittlement of Low-copper RPV Steel

  • 摘要: 针对低铜(Cu≤0.08wt%)反应堆压力容器(RPV)钢的辐照脆化效应,分析了国内压水堆核电站49根辐照监督管以及高通量工程试验堆(HFETR)和岷江试验堆(MJTR)的18次辐照试验结果,研究了不同中子注量率对低铜RPV钢辐照脆化效应的影响。结果表明,研究试验堆高中子注量率( > 1×1012 cm−2·s−1E > 1 MeV,下同))比压水堆核电站辐照监督管低中子注量率(≤1×1012 cm−2·s−1)引起的低铜RPV钢韧脆转变温度变化更显著,并对不同中子注量和不同中子注量率的结果进行归一化处理,关联了研究试验堆加速辐照与压水堆辐照监督试验结果,这对通过研究试验堆加速辐照评估新型国产RPV的使用寿命有重要意义。

     

    Abstract: The reactor pressure vessels (RPVs) of pressurized water reactor (PWR) nuclear power plants currently in operation and under construction in China are all made of low-alloy ferritic steels obtained by quenching and tempering treatments (which meet the specification requirements of 16MND5 or A508-3) with Cu≤0.08wt%. In this paper, the influence of neutron fluence rate difference between reactor surveillance capsules and accelerated irradiation tests in research reactor was studied by the results of the 49 commercial reactor surveillance capsules and the 18 irradiation tests on High Flux Engineering Test Reactor (HFETR) and the Minjiang Test Reactor (MJTR). The results indicate that ductile brittle transition temperature (DBTT) increment of low-copper RPV steels is influenced by both neutron fluence and neutron fluence rate, the DBTT increase caused by higher neutron fluence rates is more significant when the neutron fluences are comparable, and the DBTT increment of higher neutron fluence is observed to be larger when the neutron fluence rates are comparable. It is found that lower neutron fluence rate (≤1×1012 cm−2·s−1, E > 1 MeV) has no effect on the ductile-to-brittle transition temperature of low-copper RPV steels. When evaluating low-copper RPV steels, if the neutron fluence rate is no more than 1×1012 cm−2·s−1, it is not necessary to correct the embrittenment caused by the neutron fluence rate difference between reactor surveillance capsules and research reactor data. Meanwhile, there is no uniform international conclusion on the fluence rate effect when neutron fluence rate > 1×1012 cm−2·s−1, and high neutron fluence rate ( > 1×1012 cm−2·s−1) in test reactors is more significant than that caused by low neutron fluence rate (≤1×1012 cm−2·s−1) in surveillance capsule. As well, the irradiation embrittlement calculation models such as RG1.99 (Rev. 2) in the United States, JEAC4201 in Japan, and FIS in France are not fully applicable to the changing trends of low-copper RPV steels in China. Without considering the influence of chemical composition, a simple exponential fitting was performed to obtain the relationship between ductile brittle transition temperature increment and neutron fluence. Furthermore, the normalized results for different neutron fluence and neutron fluence rate were obtained, and found the correlation with the different neutron fluence rate results of commercial PWRs and research test. It is of great significance to convert the rapid irradiation test of the research test reactor into the transition temperature rise of the pressure vessel under actual service conditions, which can more accurately and reliably verify the design life and assess the remaining service life of the pressure vessel, and at the same time provide reliable data for the design of the pressure vessel of the newly-built nuclear power plant.

     

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