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Fracture studies were carried out on 170 mm OD welded straight pipes having circumferential through-wall crack in the weld under quasi-cyclic loading. The specimens were made of Type 304 LN stainless steel and welded using conventional Shielded Metal Arc (SMA) welding or Narrow Gap (NG) welding. The specimens were subjected to different amplitudes of load/displacement, which was decided based on the monotonic load carrying capacity of the specimens. It was found that the failure load reduces to 78.5% and 74.0% of the monotonic failure load for resisting 50 and 100 loading cycles, respectively in the case of NG welded pipes. The NG welded specimens showed more energy absorbing capability and crack growth resistance, when compared with SMA welded specimens. Crack growth was more stable in the case of specimens tested under displacement control; whereas the same was unstable in the case of load-controlled experiments and specimens failed by sudden collapse.

Full field blast experiments were performed to assess the potential of fluid filled polymer foam for blast mitigation. The experiments involve air blast loading of clamped mild steel plates covered with fluid filed polymer foam for blast protection. The deformation profiles and maximum deflections of plates are compared with and without foam protection. The experimental results indicate a reduction in the plate deflection up to 50% with foam protection.

The third stage of Indian nuclear power programme envisages the use of thorium as the fertile material with 233U, which would be obtained from the operation of Pu/Th based fast reactors in the later part of the second stage. Thorium-based reactors have been designed in many configurations, from light water-cooled designs to high-temperature liquid metal-cooled options. Another option, which holds promise, is the molten salt-fuelled reactor, which can be configured to give significant breeding ratios. A crucial part for achieving reasonable breeding in such reactors is the need to reprocess the salt continuously, either online or in batch mode. India has recently started carrying out fundamental studies so as to arrive at a conceptual design of Indian molten salt breeder reactor (IMSBR). Presently, various design options and possibilities are being studied from the point of view of reactor physics and thermal hydraulic design. In parallel, fundamental studies on natural circulation and corrosion behaviour of various molten salts have also been initiated.

In-service inspections of many nuclear power plants have revealed that cracks are most likely to occur in a weld or in the regions near the weld. In part-I, the problem of a stationary crack lying at the centre of a weld in a pure bending specimen SE(PB) was analysed. The detailed structure of the global plastic fields for a deep crack, under fully plastic condition, was presented. Aspects related to the state of stress at the base-weld interface were discussed. To enhance our understanding of the weld strength mismatch effects, other commonly used fracture specimens, that is, compact tension C(T) and middle tension M(T) specimens having a weld centre crack were analysed in the present investigation. The influence of weld mismatch on the structure of global stress fields (leading to plastic yielding of the ligament) as well as on the crack tip constraint was studied. It is demonstrated that, when a crack is postulated at the centre of a weld, a family of stress fields proposed in part-I for a SE(PB) specimen is applicable to a C(T) specimen also. The studies performed in this article, along with part-I, have established that in comparison to slip line field analysis, the modified upper bound theorem is simple and more general. It is applicable to macroscopically homogeneous materials and can also account for weld mismatch effects.

Currently leak-before-break based design and fracture stability assessment considers the earthquake as once applied non-cyclic load, which monotonically increases up to its maximum magnitude. The cyclic character of earthquake load and associated cyclic tearing failure mode (tearing–fatigue regime) are not explicitly considered while demonstrating stability of a through wall cracked pipe. To single out and quantify the impact of cyclic tearing on fracture stability of circumferential through wall cracked pipes, a systematic programme involving extensive number of tests is carried out. The load reduction factors (β) or safety margins, required to ensure cracked pipe stability for specified number of reversible load cycles, are directly evaluated from cyclic and corresponding monotonic pipe tests. They are presented as Cyclic Tearing Failure Assessment Diagram (CTFAD) and a β-factor equation. The proposed β-factors when applied on the monotonic critical load of a cracked pipe (evaluated using existing procedures/methods) will ensure its fracture integrity for specified number of load cycles. The safety margin required against cyclic fracture instability under different levels of earthquakes is presented.

The objective of the present study is to understand the Fatigue Crack Growth (FCG) behavior in austenitic stainless steel pipe welds. The tests have been carried out on Compact Tension (CT) specimens machined from the actual narrow gap pipe welds. The notch was located in Weld Centre Line (WCL), Heat Affected Zone (HAZ), HAZ-Fusion Line (FL) interface and the parent metal. The comparisons have been made for the FCG rate for different locations of the crack. The tests were carried out using standard procedure of ASTM E647. The results of FCG rate of narrow gap welds (HAZ, WCL, HAZ-FL interface and parent material) have been compared with that of conventional V-groove welds of Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) process. The comparison shows that the fatigue crack growth resistance of narrow gap welds is better than conventional groove welds. The FCG resistance of weld and parent material is better than HAZ location in the Paris regime. However, parent material shows superior threshold crack driving force range.

In geophysical survey system, a Time Domain Electro-Magnetic (TDEM) technique is used to detect the presence of uranium in the earth crust. For heliborne survey, certain equipments, such as power converter and data acquisition system are installed on a helicopter. The power converter is responsible for the generation of high current pulses to feed the transmitter for setting up the required electromagnetic field. The power converter consists of a free running inverter, which sits over a DC-DC converter. Data acquisition system acquires data from various sensors for further processing and interpretation. Data acquisition system consists of a highly vibration sensitive onboard computer (IDAN boxes) rigidly mounted over a plate inside the data acquisition system enclosure. Since the power converter and data acquisition system are installed on the floor inside the surveying helicopter, it is mandatory to qualify these equipments for vibration & shock as per MIL standard before onboard installation. To evaluate the structural integrity of power converter and data acquisition system under various loading conditions of vibration and shock, a preliminary estimation of stresses and deflections was made by hand calculations and then, finite element analysis has been performed to optimize the design. Modal analysis has been performed to estimate the natural frequencies of power converter. Since the natural frequencies of the power converter were within the disturbing frequency range (i.e., 10 to 84 Hz), thickness of converter base plate and inverter base plate has been increased to avoid resonance. Since the data acquisition system consists of a highly vibration sensitive onboard computer, it has been proposed to mount it on isolators to minimize the vibration. To evaluate the structural integrity of data acquisition system under various loading conditions, finite element analysis has been performed. This paper presents the methodology adopted for design and analysis of the equipments for the specified input of vibration and shock.

Pipe bends or elbows are commonly used components for nuclear power plant piping system. In service, these piping components are subjected to internal pressure in addition to bending loads and the internal pressure is known to have a significant effect on the load carrying capacity of these components. Hence, a systematic study was carried out to investigate and quantify the effect of internal pressure on the fracture behaviour of elbows used in nuclear power plant piping system. Fracture studies were conducted on five 219 mm diameter carbon steel elbows with and without internal pressure under in-plane opening moment. The investigations have shown that the presence of a circumferential notch at the intrados has a more detrimental effect on the fracture behaviour of the elbow, when compared with the presence of an axial notch at the intrados. It is also found that internal pressure plays a significant role in reducing the ovalization.

The overall goal of nuclear power plant safety is to protect individuals, society and the environment from undue radiological hazard so that nuclear power production does not significantly add to the health risks to which individuals and society are already exposed. This paper addresses the safety principles followed during the design phase of life cycle of a nuclear power plant. The principles followed such as safety classification, design rules based on failure modes, detailed stress analysis, stress categorization, consideration of design basis events, failure probability, flaw tolerance, leak-before-break are described. Engineering structures always contain flaws, albeit of very small size. Fatigue and fracture are the two important failure modes affected by flaws. Thus flaw tolerance becomes very important. This is assessed by applying fracture mechanics principles. The R6 procedure, which is used for evaluation of structures containing flaws, has been incorporated in the software BARC-R6. Improvements by way of shell-nozzle junction pull-out, adoption of hot wire GTAW with narrow gap technique have been brought out. Post Fukushima incidence, resistance to seismic loading and containment design have assumed great importance. The paper describes these aspects in detail. Regulatory aspects of seismic design regarding siting, Seismic margin assessment, base isolation, retrofitting are the aspects covered under seismic design. Under the action of seismic loading, the piping in a nuclear power plant piping is vulnerable to a phenomenon called ratcheting. The process of seismic margin assessment and consideration of ratchetting has been backed up by a large experimental data. The experiments carried out on structures and piping components form a part of the paper.

Following the Fukushima accident, the safety features of Nuclear Power Plants (NPP) are being re-examined worldwide including India to demonstrate capabilities to cope with severe accidents. In order to restore public confidence and support for nuclear power, it is felt necessary to design future NPPs with near zero impact outside the plant boundary and thus enabling elimination of emergency planning in public domain. Authors have identified a set of safety features which are needed to be incorporated in advanced reactors to achieve this goal. These features enabling prevention, termination, mitigation and containment of radioactivity for beyond design basis accidents arising from extreme natural events are essential for achieving the goal of elimination of emergency planning in public domain. Inherent safety characteristics, passive and engineered safety features to achieve these functions are discussed in this paper. Present trends and future developments in this direction are also described briefly.

Removal of decay heat from an operating reactor during a prolonged station blackout condition is a big concern for reactor designers, especially after the recent Fukushima accident. In the case of a prolonged station blackout condition, heat removal is possible only by passive means since no pumps or active systems are available. Keeping this in mind, the AHWR has been designed with many passive safety features. One of them is a passive means of removing decay heat with the help of Isolation Condensers (ICs) which are submerged in a big water pool called the Gravity Driven Water Pool (GDWP). The ICs have many tubes in which the steam, generated by the reactor core due to the decay heat, flows and condenses by rejecting the heat into the water pool. After condensation, the condensate falls back into the steam drum of the reactor. The GDWP tank holds a large amount of water, about 8000 m3, which is located at a higher elevation than the steam drum of the reactor in order to promote natural circulation. Due to the recent Fukushima type accidents, it has been a concern to understand and evaluate the capability of the ICs to remove decay heat for a prolonged period without escalating fuel sheath temperature. In view of this, an analysis has been performed for decay heat removal characteristics over several days of an AHWR by ICs. The computer code RELAP5/MOD3.2 was used for this purpose. Results indicate that the ICs can remove the decay heat for more than 10 days without causing any bulk boiling in the GDWP. After that, decay heat can be removed for more than 40 days by boiling off the pool inventory. The pressure inside the containment does not exceed the design pressure even after 10 days by condensation of steam generated from the GDWP on the walls of containment and on the Passive Containment Cooling System (PCCS) tubes. If venting is carried out after this period, the decay heat can be removed for more than 50 days without exceeding the design limits.

The integrity assessment of the primary piping components needs to be demonstrated under normal operation cyclic loadings as well as under complex cyclic loadings of extreme magnitude as may come during a severe earthquake event. In order to understand material's cyclic plasticity and fatigue-ratcheting behaviour, systematic experimental and analytical investigations have been carried out on specimens of SA333Gr.6 carbon steel and SS304LN stainless steel. The material specification of SA333Gr.6 is same as used in Primary Heat Transport (PHT) piping of Pressurized Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs) and material specification of SS304LN steel is same as proposed for Indian Advance Heavy Water Reactor's (AHWR's) Main Heat Transport (MHT) piping. The test program included the tensile, axial fatigue and uniaxial ratcheting tests to establish the material's mechanical properties and cyclic plasticity behavior. The results of these tests have been investigated in details using few popular finite element cyclic plasticity models to understand and quantify the material's cyclic plasticity behavior. The studies revealed the need to modify the Chaboche model to simulate the LCF/cyclic plasticity and ratcheting under different strain/stress amplitudes loading conditions. On accounting for modification, the Chaboche model nicely predicted the LCF and ratcheting response for all the tests. The tests, finite element analyses result and their interpretations have been presented in this paper.

The paper presents experimental and numerical work carried out on a full-scale four storey reinforced concrete (RC) structure for seismic assessment by pushover method. For practicality, a portion of an existing structure having certain eccentricities was replicated for the experimental setup. The structure was detailed as per non-seismic reinforcement detailing norms of Indian Standards. The experiment was carried out as a round robin exercise, in which various institutes in India participated and presented pre-test results in the form of pushover curves. A large variation in the pre-test results highlighted that the result of a pushover analysis is highly sensitive to the adopted modeling techniques. This paper reports the details and results of the experiment and focuses on the need of modeling various structural nonlinearities to obtain realistic results. The results of pre-test analysis by various research groups, in which the emphasis was given on modeling issues as well as a more efficient post-test numerical procedure is also presented and compared. It is shown that a basic pushover analysis considering only flexural failures may not be able to achieve a realistic simulation, thus it is mandatory to develop relatively simple, yet effective models to consider more complex phenomena such as joint shear failures, to achieve realistic predictions.

A reinforced concrete (RC) framed structure detailed according to non-seismic detailing provisions as per Indian Standard was tested on shake table under dynamic loads. The structure had 3 main storeys and an additional storey to simulate the footing to plinth level. In plan the structure was symmetric with 2 bays in each direction. In order to optimize the information obtained from the tests, tests were planned in three different stages. In the first stage, tests were done with masonry infill panels in one direction to obtain information on the stiffness increase due to addition of infill panels. In second stage, the infills were removed and tests were conducted on the structure without and with tuned liquid dampers (TLD) on the roof of the structure to investigate the effect of TLD on seismic response of the structure. In the third stage, tests were conducted on bare frame structure under biaxial time histories with gradually increasing peak ground acceleration (PGA) till failure. The simulated earthquakes represented low, moderate and severe seismic ground motions. The effects of masonry infill panels on dynamic characteristics of the structure, effectiveness of TLD in reducing the seismic response of structure and the failure patterns of non-seismically detailed structures, are clearly brought out. Details of design and similitude are also discussed.

The design of Nuclear Power Plant piping is based on Leak-Before-Break (LBB) design philosophy. The integrity of cracked nuclear piping system in LBB is often examined from conventional fracture mechanics. Conventionally the fracture analysis is performed by assuming infinite compliance of the piping system, which means that the stiffening effect of the connected uncracked piping system is fully neglected. However, in reality the ends of the pipe are connected to the rigid pressure vessels, primary coolant pipes, etc. In order to study the effect of compliance on the fracture behaviour of pipes, fracture studies were carried out on fourteen specimens of 219 mm outer diameter carbon steel pipes having circumferential through-wall crack. The fracture tests were conducted under four point bending. Out of the fourteen specimens, twelve specimens were tested in fixed end condition (finite compliance) and the remaining two specimens were tested in simply supported condition (infinite compliance). These pipes were made of SA 333 Gr. 6 carbon steel. Extensive instrumentation was carried out on these pipes to collect various data, e.g., load, load-line displacement (LLD), crack mouth opening displacement (CMOD), rotation at the ends (flanges), deflection at critical locations and surface crack growth. Surface crack growth was monitored using Image Processing Technique (IPT). The investigations have shown that the load carrying capacity of the pipes under finite compliance condition (fixed end condition) increases when compared to infinite compliance (simply supported condition). The load carrying capacity of the pipes under finite compliance weakly depends on the initial crack angle where as the load carrying capacity of the pipes under infinite compliance strongly depends on the initial crack angle. The safety margin is quite large particularly with a stiff piping system. This benefit in terms of increase in safety margin from LBB point of view is due to the moment redistribution. This paper discusses the effects of notch angle, span and the support conditions on the fracture behaviour of pipes with circumferential through-wall crack.

A systematic experimental and analytical study has been carried out to investigate the effect of vibration loading on the fatigue life of the piping components. Three Point bend (TPB) specimens machined from the actual pipe have been used for the evaluation of Paris constants by carrying out the experiments under vibration + cyclic and cyclic loading as per the ASTM Standard E647. These constants have been used for the prediction of the fatigue life of the pipe having part-through notch of a/t = 0.25 and aspect ratio (2c/a) of 10. Predicted results have shown the reduction in fatigue life of the notched pipe subjected to vibration + cyclic loading by 50% compared to that of cyclic loading. Predicted results have been validated by carrying out the full-scale pipe (with part-through notch) tests. Notched pipes were subjected to loading conditions such that the initial stress-intensity factor remains same as that of TPB specimen. Experimental results of the full-scale pipe tests under vibration + cyclic loading has shown the reduction in fatigue life by 70% compared to that of cyclic loading. Fractographic examination of the fracture surface of the tested specimens subjected to vibration + cyclic loading have shown higher presence of brittle phases such as martensite (in the form of isolated planar facets) and secondary micro cracks. This could be the reason for the reduction of fatigue life in pipe subjected to vibration + cyclic loading.

The objective of the present study is to understand the fatigue crack growth behavior in austenitic stainless steel pipes and pipe welds by carrying out analysis/predictions and experiments. The Paris law has been used for the prediction of fatigue crack growth life. To carry out the analysis, Paris constants have been determined for pipe (base) and pipe weld materials by using Compact Tension (CT) specimens machined from the actual pipe/pipe weld. Analyses have been carried out to predict the fatigue crack growth life of the austenitic stainless steel pipes/pipes welds having part through cracks on the outer surface. In the analyses, Stress Intensity Factors ( K ) have been evaluated through two different schemes. The first scheme considers the ‘ K ’ evaluations at two points of the crack front i.e. maximum crack depth and crack tip at the outer surface. The second scheme accounts for the area averaged root mean square stress intensity factor ( K RMS ) at deepest and surface points. Crack growth and the crack shape with loading cycles have been evaluated. In order to validate the analytical procedure/results, experiments have been carried out on full scale pipe and pipe welds with part through circumferential crack. Fatigue crack growth life evaluated using both schemes have been compared with experimental results. Use of stress intensity factor ( K RMS ) evaluated using second scheme gives better fatigue crack growth life prediction compared to that of first scheme. Fatigue crack growth in pipe weld (Gas Tungsten Arc Welding) can be predicted well using Paris constants of base material but prediction is non-conservative for pipe weld (Shielded Metal Arc Welding). Further, predictions using fatigue crack growth rate curve of ASME produces conservative results for pipe and GTAW pipe welds and comparable results for SMAW pipe welds.

In level-3 Leak-Before-Break (LBB) analysis, stability of a postulated through-wall circumferential crack is demonstrated by simplified fracture mechanics calculations. Detailed experimental studies, conducted by the authors, have revealed that the conventional assessment procedure used to demonstrate LBB is too conservative. There is a large factor of safety due to system indeterminacy. It was observed that the critical load of a cracked piping system (with even a large through-wall circumferential crack of about 120°) is of the order of 75–90% of the collapse load of the uncracked piping system. Reduction in load carrying capacity is even less for a piping system having an off-centre crack. This article discusses the above-mentioned aspects in detail. Detailed 3-D elastic-plastic finite element analyses of some of these tests were performed. The suitability of these numerical results to predict crack initiation load in light of the experimental data is discussed.

A combined mechanical property evaluation methodology with ABI (Automated Ball Indentation) simulation and Artificial Neural Network (ANN) analysis is evolved to evaluate the mechanical properties for Carbon Manganese Steel (SA-333 Grade-6) and Stainless Steel (SS-304LN). The experimental load deflection data is converted into meaningful mechanical properties for these materials and their evaluated property is verified with experimental tensile specimen results. An ANN database is generated with the help of contact type finite element analysis by numerically simulating the ABI process for various magnitudes of yield strength (σ yp ) (200 MPa–400 MPa) with a range of strain hardening exponent (n) (0.05–0.5) and strength coefficient (K) (600 MPa–1600 MPa). For the present problem, a ball indenter of 1.57 mm diameter having Young’s modulus higher than test piece is used to minimize the error due to indenter deformation. Test piece dimension is kept large enough in comparison to the indenter configuration in the simulation to minimize the deflection at the outer edge of the test piece. Further, this database after the neural network training; is used to analyse measured material properties of different test pieces. The ANN predictions are reconfirmed with contact type finite element analysis for an arbitrary selected test sample. The methodology evolved in this work can be extended to predict material properties for any irradiated nuclear material in the service. Extensions of the ABI tests and the associated database analysis could lead to evaluation of the indentation energy to fracture needed for the structural integrity assessment of aged components.

In water-cooled nuclear power reactors, significant quantities of hydrogen could be produced following a postulated loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA) along with nonavailability of emergency core cooling system (ECCS). Passive autocatalytic recombiners (PAR) are implemented in the containment of water-cooled power reactors to mitigate the risk of hydrogen combustion. In the presence of hydrogen with available oxygen, a catalytic reaction occurs spontaneously at the catalyst surfaces below conventional ignition concentration limits and temperature and even in presence of steam. Heat of reaction produces natural convection flow through the enclosure and promotes mixing in the containment. For the assessment of the PAR performance in terms of maximum temperature of catalyst surface and outlet hydrogen concentration an in-house 3D CFD model has been developed. The code has been used to study the mechanism of catalytic recombination and has been tested for two literature-quoted experiments.

In this work, Automated Ball Indentation (ABI) technique is based on load controlled multiple indentations (at a single penetration location) of a polished surface by a spherical indenter (0.7 to 1.46 mm) and indentation depth is progressively increased to a maximum user specified limit with intermediate partial unloading. This technique permits measurement of yield strength, stress-strain curve, strength coefficient and strain hardening exponent. ABI Testing was carried out on samples of Zr-Nb2.5 (Pressure Tube Material) with different heat treatment conditions in which temperature was varying (550 degree to 900 degree and retention time was varying 0.5 to 6 hour and furnace cooled. For all these test material and conditions, the ABI derived results were in very good agreement with those from conventional standard test methods.

This paper describes the experimental studies carried out on cracked austenitic stainless steel pipe and pipe welds under bending loads. Pipe welds were produced by gas tungsten arc welding (GTAW) and shielded metal arc welding (SMAW). Fracture resistance curves for pipe and pipe welds were compared. Results indicate that the fracture resistance of pipe and pipe weld (GTAW) is comparable but that of pipe weld (GTAW+SMAW) is inferior. Cracks do not deviate from their original plane during propagation as observed in the cases of carbon steel pipe and pipe welds. The fracture resistance of pipe welds does not depend on the loading histories to which it has been subjected prior to fracture test. Initiation and crack propagation were observed prior to the maximum moment. An existing limit load expression is applicable for the pipe base material but gives non-conservative results for the pipe welds. Multiplication factors have been suggested for the pipe welds for evaluation of limit loads using the existing expression. Fracture resistance for the pipe and compact tension specimens have also been compared for base material and welds.

In this paper, factors for calculating the J-resistance curve from the measured crack mouth opening displacement (CMOD) record are derived for circumferential through wall cracked straight pipes subjected to pure bending. Rigorous elastic plastic finite element analyses of around 125 circumferential through wall cracked straight pipes subjected to four point bending have been carried out to validate the proposed equations. The factors have also been validated with a few fracture experimental results on straight pipes. For these tests the J–R curve has been evaluated using the conventional as well as using the proposed factors along with the moment-CMOD record.

Earthquake load, which is cyclic in nature and of short duration, is the main design basis accident load for designing the primary heat transport (PHT) piping components of Nuclear Power Plants. Adequate protection of piping components from the effects of earthquake requires detailed knowledge of strength and deformation characteristics of the components and assemblies making up the piping system. Fracture behaviour of 23 pipes was studied by conducting cyclic tests under four-point bending. Fifteen pipes were of carbon steel (SA3 3 3 Grade 6) of 219 mm, 324 mm and 406 mm ODs and eight pipes were of stainless steel (AISI Type 304LN) of 168 mm OD with through-wall circumferential crack. Six pipes were tested under displacement control and the rest under load control. The effect of various parameters such as location and size of initial crack in base metal and weld metal, cyclic load range and displacement increment on crack growth and number of cycles for failure was investigated. The investigations showed significant reduction in the fracture resistance under cyclic loading conditions. Crack growth equations have been proposed for carbon steel pipes with and without weld under cyclic tearing.

The integrity assessment of bi-metallic joints is an important issue for the nuclear industry. Recent international surveys of such welded joints have shown that there are several cracking problems, due to fabrication, ageing or corrosion. Thus there exists a strong need to develop simple methods to assess the fracture integrity of such bi-metallic joints. The current leak-before-break (LBB) methodology is based on evaluating the integrity of cracked nuclear piping, having mismatch in material properties, by considering the strength properties of the base material and fracture properties of weld material. This method generally yields safe results but it is highly conservative. At present FEM is considered as the best method to evaluate limit load and crack driving force for these mis-matched/bi-metallic structures. However, it is always useful to have some simplified estimation methods for engineering calculations. Therefore, an estimation method has been developed for evaluating the limit loads of mis-matched/bi-metallic specimens such as centre crack plate, three-point bend specimen and compact tension specimen. This article contains details of analytical procedures to evaluate limit loads of bi-metallic specimens. A simplified procedure to assess the fracture integrity of such bi-metallic specimens is explained in a related article.

The objective of the paper is to study the effect of cyclic loading on the fracture resistance of the SA 333 Gr.6 carbon steel material of the primary heat transport (PHT) system piping of Indian pressurized heavy water reactors (PHWR). Tests have been carried out on compact tension specimens machined from the pipe used in the PHT system. The effect of load ratio, incremental plastic displacement and loading displacement rate on fracture resistance properties of the material has been studied. The cyclic fracture resistance curve has been compared with the monotonic fracture resistance curve and has been found to vary significantly. A negative load ratio with very low incremental plastic displacement between two consecutive loading cycles, significantly affects the fracture resistance of the material.

Studies have been carried out on carbon steel pipes to demonstrate the leak before break design criterion and validate the analytical procedures. Fatigue crack initiation, fatigue crack growth rate and fracture resistance behaviour of the pipes have been experimentally and analytically evaluated. The tests have been carried out on pipes of outer diameter 219 and 15.1 mm wall thickness having a part through notch in the circumferential direction. The aspect ratios (2 c / a ) of the notches were 56, 28 and 18. Comparing the analytical and experimental results has validated analytical procedures. It has been observed that the analytical and experimental results compare well. The fatigue crack growth curve (d a /d N ∼Δ K ) obtained from three point bend specimens and pipe tests have been compared with the fatigue crack growth curve in ASME Section XI. The comparison shows that use of the ASME curve in analysis of components will give a conservative result in comparison to the curves obtained from the actual pipe tests. Fracture resistance behaviour of the pipe has been observed to be strongly dependent on the load histories to which the pipe has been subjected.

The phenomenon of ratchetting is defined as constant accumulation of plastic strain or deformation under combined steady state and cyclic loading. It can reduce the fatigue life or can cause failure of piping components or systems subjected to seismic or other cyclic loads. The uniaxial ratchetting characteristics of SA333 Gr.6 steel have been investigated at room temperature in the present paper. The specimens were subjected to cyclic axial stress with a constant mean stress of 200 MPa and a varying amplitude stress of 149, 174, 199 and 224 MPa. Tests were also performed on 203.2 mm, Sch 80, SA333 Gr. 6 carbon steel straight pipe. The pipe was subjected to a constant internal pressure of 18 MPa and a cyclic bending load. The effects of amplitude of load on the rate of ratchetting have also been investigated in the present paper. The uniaxial experiments showed that specimens exhibited shakedown at low stress amplitude after some strain accumulation. However, specimens experienced continuous ratchetting at higher stress amplitudes with no shakedown before failure. Ovalization of the pipe cross-section was observed when the pipe was subjected to constant internal pressure and cyclic point load. Local bulging was observed at higher loading. The pipe did not show any shakedown behaviour for the given cycles of loading and exhibited continuous ratchetting under the varying amplitude loading., © Elsevier

The aim of the present paper is to evaluate the tensile and fracture mechanics properties of the SA350 LF2 carbon steel material used as the Header material in the primary heat transport (PHT) system piping of the Indian pressurized heavy water reactors (PHWR). Tensile, fatigue crack growth rate and fracture toughness tests have been carried out on specimens machined from the Header of the actual PHT pipes. The effect of temperature on tensile properties has been discussed. The effect of temperature and notch orientation on fracture resistance behavior of the material and fatigue crack growth rate dependence on the notch orientation and stress ratio has also been discussed.

Deterministic fracture analysis of cracked structures has been successful in demonstrating the behavior of structures under observed or postulated flaws. The key ingredients in a deterministic fracture mechanics analysis are the initial crack size, crack-driving force, applied stress and material properties. However, crack size, postulated accidental loading, mechanical and fracture parameters are often subjected to considerable scatter or uncertainty. Hence, the result of fracture mechanics analysis must be viewed with some skepticism. Quite often, conservative bounds on inputs are employed on these by providing a conservative estimate to fracture. However, it may lead to predict the overly conservative and unrealistic results. These uncertainties encourage us to adopt a statistical or probabilistic approach to the structural integrity. R6 is a well-known engineering assessment procedure for the evaluation of the structural integrity of the flawed structure. This paper presents the determination of failure probabilities of a straight pipe with a through-wall crack in the circumferential direction, using the R6 method. The pipe is subjected to an in-plane bending moment. The scatter in the crack size, mechanical and fracture properties are considered. The probability of failure is studied for variation in applied loads. Monte Carlo simulation is used to find the failure probability. The study is performed by constructing failure assessment diagram (FAD) using all the three options of R6. The results are compared with the approximate analytical formulations and with those available in the literature.

In water-cooled nuclear power reactors, significant quantities of steam and hydrogen could be produced within the primary containment following the postulated design basis accidents (DBA) or beyond design basis accidents (BDBA). For accurate calculation of the temperature/pressure rise and hydrogen transport calculation in nuclear reactor containment due to such scenarios, wall condensation heat transfer coefficient (HTC) is used. In the present work, the adaptation of a commercial CFD code with the implementation of models for steam condensation on wall surfaces in presence of noncondensable gases is explained. Steam condensation has been modeled using the empirical average HTC, which was originally developed to be used for “lumped-parameter” (volume-averaged) modeling of steam condensation in the presence of noncondensable gases. The present paper suggests a generalized HTC based on curve fitting of most of the reported semiempirical condensation models, which are valid for specific wall conditions. The present methodology has been validated against limited reported experimental data from the COPAIN experimental facility. This is the first step towards the CFD-based generalized analysis procedure for condensation modeling applicable for containment wall surfaces that is being evolved further for specific wall surfaces within the multicompartment containment atmosphere.

The performance of the Chaboche kinematic hardening model has been evaluated in this paper to predict the ratchetting responses for a broad set of uniaxial and biaxial loading histories. The investigations have been performed with reference to both uniaxial and biaxial experimental data, viz. (a) strain and stress controlled uniaxial tests on tensile specimens; (b) biaxial tests on straight pipes with constant internal pressure and cyclic bending load; and (c) a shake table test on elbow. The parameters of the Chaboche model have been calculated from the uniaxial strain controlled stable hysteresis loop. Amongst the various parameters in the Chaboche model, it has been found that the selection of the value of γ3 plays a crucial role in achieving better simulation. The Chaboche model was observed to predict complete shakedown for γ3=0. On the other hand, the model closely simulated the experimental results for γ3=9. The same parameters have been used to analyze the biaxial loading condition. Ratchetting simulation studies by the Chaboche model have resulted in reasonably good agreement with experiments., © Elsevier

In this work, element free Galerkin method (EFGM) has been used to obtain the solution of edge crack problem under mechanical loads as it provides a versatile technique to model static as well as moving crack problems without any requirement of remeshing. At first, some techniques are presented for enriching the EFG approximations near the crack tip such as extrinsic and intrinsic enrichment. Extrinsic enrichment involves the addition of solution form to the trial function, whereas the EFG basis is expanded to include few terms from crack tip solution in intrinsic enrichment. Apart from enrichment techniques, four basic techniques of smoothing meshless approximations near nonconvex boundaries are also presented such as diffraction, transparency, see through and wedge model. These techniques are then used for the parameteric analysis of an edge crack problem under mode-1 loading and results obtained using different approaches are compared with each other as well as with exact solution. Among these techniques, the extrinsic PU enrichment technique was found to be more accurate as compared to other approaches. Extrinsic PU enrichment technique has also been used for the analysis of a shear edge crack problem. In all these techniques, the value of mode-1 stress intensity factor and mode-2 stress intensity factor has been evaluated by interaction integral approach. Effect of crack orientation is also studied for different cases.

Evaluation of crack growth during fracture and fatigue-crack-growth test using unloading compliance technique is well established for standard homogeneous fracture specimens. Three Point Bend specimens are widely used to measure fracture toughness and fatigue-crack-growth rates in metallic materials. A compliance functions is given in ASTM E1820-09 [5] to find out the in-situ crack length based on crack mouth opening displacement (CMOD). One of the inpute required in compliance function is the young's modulus of elasticity of the specimens material. To quantify the fracture toughness of weld joints, specimens are machined from weldments. Such specimens comprises of both weld and base materials. In general, base and weld materials have different young's modulus of elasticity ( E ). ASTM (E-1820) method doesn’t account for the influence of mismatch in “ E ” values of base and weld material on the compliance function. In this work, an effective modulus of elasticity is proposed for TPB specimens having weld center crack to account for the influence of mismatch in “ E ” values of base and weld material and geometry of weld on the measurement of crack length using ASTM compliance function. Numerical studies were carried out on TPB specimens. Compliances were calculated by linear elastic 3D Finite Element analysis. Wide range of relative crack length (a/w) varying from 0.3 to 0.7 and practical range of weld width were considered. Crack lengths calculated based on proposed effective modulus of elasticity were compared with the results obtained from ASTM (E-1820) technique (applicable to homogeneous specimens). Our studies revealed that, in comparison to ASTM technique, the proposed scheme for the TPB specimens having weld centre crack allows a very accurate evaluation of actual crack size.

The objective of the present study is to understand the fatigue crack growth behavior and validate analytical procedures for austenitic stainless steel and carbon steel pipes, pipe welds and elbows. The study involved fatigue tests on actual components and specimens. The Paris law has been used for the prediction of fatigue crack growth life. Paris constants have been determined for pipe (base), pipe weld and pipe elbow materials by using Compact Tension (CT)/Three Point Bend (TPB) specimens machined from the actual pipe, pipe weld and pipe elbow. Analyses have been carried out to predict the fatigue crack growth life of these piping components having part through cracks on the outer surface. In the analyses, Stress Intensity Factor ( K ) has been evaluated through two different schemes. The first scheme considers the ‘ K’ evaluations at two points of the crack front i.e. maximum crack depth and crack tip end at the outer surface. The second scheme accounts for the area averaged root mean square stress intensity factor (KRMS) at deepest and surface points. In order to validate the analytical procedure/results, experiments have been carried out on full scale pipes, pipe welds with part through circumferential crack. The tests have also been conducted on the full scale carbon steel elbows having part-through circumferential notch at intrados location and axial notch at crown location on the outer surface. Fatigue crack growth life evaluated using both schemes have been compared with experimental results. Use of stress intensity factor (KRMS) evaluated using second scheme gives better fatigue crack growth life prediction compared to that of first scheme.

With an objective of understanding the cyclic fracture, fatigue crack growth and ratcheting behaviour of Type 304LN stainless steel piping components used in primary heat transport system of nuclear power plants, subjected to various operational, loading and environmental conditions, experimental studies were carried out on totally 36 straight pipes and eight elbows. The pipe dimensions were in two categories: 170 mm OD and 15 mm thickness or 324 mm OD and 25 mm thickness. These studies on actual size piping components of power plants have resulted in very valuable fatigue behaviour related data, which would form important inputs in assuring safety and damage tolerant design of power plants. An overview of the studies is presented in this paper.

Almost every pipeline in power and process industries experiences vibration during its life time either during steady-state or due to dynamic transients like relief valve discharge, earthquake etc. Excessive piping vibrations are the major cause of machinery downtime, leaks, fatigue failure, high noise, fires and explosions in refineries and other process industries. It is important that piping vibration amplitudes should be quantified in order to check if the vibration levels are acceptable. If it is found beyond acceptable limit, the piping layout, piping supports or unsupported span needs to be modified. Flow-induced vibration is the most probable and widely observed mechanism of piping steady-state vibrations. Vibration in large diameter piping can produce excessive noise and can cause failures of attached small-bore piping or in severe cases pipe itself can rupture. In present paper quantification and required remedial action for mitigation of vibration from H 2 S booster discharge pipeline has been presented and also the codal qualification of piping with new support conditions have also been done as per applicable ASME B31.3 code.