1997 Volume 37 Issue 8 Pages 821-828
Irradiation hardening and embrittlement of reactor pressure vessel (RPV) steels having different contents of copper and nickel have been investigated as a part of the phase III of IAEA Coordinated Research Program (CRP). Seven kinds of materials which were made by Japanese steel manufacturers for the CRP were used. Neutron irradiation was conducted in Japan Materials Testing Reactor (JMTR). Mechanical properties of the materials were examined by conducting the hardness, tensile, Charpy impact and fracture toughness tests before and after irradiation. Some relationships between the changes of the mechanical properties due to irradiation were established. The increase in yield strength was correlated with hardness increase and the shift of Charpy transition temperature. In the upper shelf temperature range, the decrease in fracture toughness was well correlated with the degree of the increase in yield strength.
