About this Abstract |
| Meeting |
2026 TMS Annual Meeting & Exhibition
|
| Symposium
|
Accelerated Qualification Methods for Nuclear Reactor Structural Materials
|
| Presentation Title |
Phase Interactions Affect Local Mechanical Response in RPV Steels |
| Author(s) |
Elliot H. Marrero, Grayson Nemets, Jasmyne Emerson, Maria Okuniewski, Janelle Wharry |
| On-Site Speaker (Planned) |
Elliot H. Marrero |
| Abstract Scope |
This talk aims to understand how phase composition and interphase boundaries in reactor pressure vessel (RPV) steels shape structure–property relationships. RPV steels and their welds contain ferrite, bainite, and martensite phases whose distribution and interfaces influence irradiation resistance and mechanical behavior. While work has focused on RPV irradiation embrittlement resulting from nanoprecipitation and dislocation loop formation, the role of interphase interactions remains poorly understood. Phase interfaces are sites for strain localization as they affect dislocation transmission and can govern damage initiation. Nanohardness mapping shows that while various microstructures exhibit similar hardness, they distribute stress differently depending upon phase fraction and contiguity. For example, ferrite phase contiguity produces favorable conditions for dislocation motion, while bainite and martensite contiguity produce higher hardness. Advanced electron backscatter diffraction studies reveal local asymmetries in deformation and strain based on phase fraction and contiguity. |
| Proceedings Inclusion? |
Planned: |
| Keywords |
Iron and Steel, Characterization, Mechanical Properties |