Abstract
HT9 steel is an attractive ferritic/martensitic steel that is used in components of nuclear and fossil power plants because of its high strength and good swelling resistance. Specific phenomena (such as segregation, voiding, cracking, etc.) are prevalent along grain boundaries since these interfaces act as efficient sources for vacancies. The accumulation of vacancies in grain boundaries may result in intergranular fracture. In this study, HT9 steel was subjected to creep tests at elevated temperature (about 0.5 Tm) and two different creep conditions (where creep lifetimes were about 100 and about 1000 hours, respectively). The grain boundaries in HT9 steel after creep tests were studied by the use of scanning electron microscopy in order to establish the relationship between the grain boundary structure and creep damage. Images and data obtained using electron backscatter diffraction reveal a high susceptibility of high-angle boundaries to creep cavitation, as expected. In addition, the Σ3 boundaries are also susceptible to damage under these conditions at a similar or even higher rate as compared with random high-angle boundaries.
Published Version
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