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Growth beyond megawatts
Hash Hashemianpresident@ans.org
When talking about growth in the nuclear sector, there can be a somewhat myopic focus on increasing capacity from year to year. Certainly, we all feel a degree of excitement when new projects are announced, and such announcements are undoubtedly a reflection of growth in the field, but it’s important to keep in mind that growth in nuclear has many metrics and takes many forms.
Nuclear growth—beyond megawatts—also takes the form of increasing international engagement. That engagement looks like newcomer countries building their nuclear sectors for the first time. It also looks like countries with established nuclear sectors deepening their connections and collaborations. This is one of the reasons I have been focused throughout my presidency on bringing more international members and organizations into the fold of the American Nuclear Society.
He Xue, Rongxin Wang, Zheng Wang, Jun Wu, Miao Geng
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 199 | Number 5 | May 2025 | Pages 803-816
Research Article | doi.org/10.1080/00295639.2024.2393020
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The heterogeneity of the microstructure and mechanical properties of safe-end dissimilar metal welded joints (DMWJs) presents a challenge to the quantitative prediction of the stress corrosion cracking (SCC) growth rate directly from laboratory data. This study investigates the effect of the heterogeneity of the mechanical properties of the 316L-welded heat-affected zone (HAZ) in safe-end DWMJs on the SCC tip stress-strain field and the SCC growth rate.
First, based on the analysis of microstructures in localized regions within the 316L-welded HAZ and the acquisition of material mechanical properties through microhardness testing, a user-defined material subroutine was developed to characterize the heterogeneous material properties within the 316L-welded HAZ. Then, using this finite element model with an inhomogeneous distribution of the mechanical properties of the material, the crack tip strain rates (CTSRs) at different locations within the 316L-welded HAZ were obtained.
In conjunction with the FRI model, the SCC growth rates at various locations within the HAZ were determined. The results show that the closer to the 52Mw/316L fusion boundary within the 316L-welded HAZ, the greater the yield strength of the material and the higher the CTSR and predicted SCC growth rates at the characteristic distance.
