Title:
|
Creep crack growth in cast steam turbine casing steels
|
The creep rupture properties of cast !Cr!Mo!V and ICrlMo!V alloy steel
used in the manufacture of power station steam generating plant, have been
investigated. The effects of constraint and geometry on the creep rupture
properties are also considered.
The validity of various criteria controlling macroscopic creep crack
growth in cast CrMoV alloys has been examined. It is found that neither
the stress intensity factor nor reference stress correlate satisfactorily
the creep crack growth rates at the test temperature of 5500C. Certain
minimum displacements must be achieved for crack initiation and propagation.
It is found that this displacement as measured by crack opening displacement
or crack aspect ratio, is the same in both compact tension and centre-cracked
panel geometries, is invariant with crack length and decreases with
increasing constraint. The effect of constraint on creep crack growth rate
in the two geometries is less conclusive.
A new model describing creep crack growth in cast CrMoV alloy steels
has been developed. The model is based on the results from a numerical
finite element creep analysis of the relaxation and redistribution of stress
ahead of an incubating creep crack. It is found that macroscopic creep
crack growth in a material undergoing either plane stress or plane strain
deformation can be described by a fracture stress which is based on the
Von Mises equivalent stress. It has been shown that this model is capable
of rationalising all of the experimental crack velocity data from the cast
CrMoV alloys. The resultant degree of data correlation is far superior to
that obtained when using the stress intensity factor or reference stress.
A cumulative damage creep fracture model based upon the results from
the numerical analysis has been developed. It is found that the model is
capable of predicting the behaviour of propagating creep cracks in cast
CrMoV alloys from smooth bar creep rupture data.
|