Mechanical Property Estimation of Similar Weld using Ball Indentation Technique

Harshit Kumar Khandelwal, Kamal Sharma, Rahul Chhibber

Homi Bhabha National Institute, Mumbai, India.
Indian Institute of Technology Rajasthan, Jodhpur, India.
Reactor Safety Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai, India.

DOI: 10.4236/jmmce.2012.1111116                

Abstract

A weld joint is composed of three principal zones viz., base metal, Heat Affected Zone (HAZ), and weld zone. Thus, the variation in mechanical behavior exists not only among these zones, but also from point to point in each individual zone. Being destructive in nature, the conventional method of mechanical testing cannot successfully used to estimate the variation in the mechanical behavior at different zones of the weld joint. Moreover, the conventional method of mechanical testing cannot characterize the material using small amount of material. In this respect, Ball Indentation (BI) methodology was considered to be useful approach, since it can characterize the mechanical properties of a material using very small amount of material in non destructive manner. The present work is an attempt to characterize the variation in the mechanical properties among each zone (global variation), and from point to point in each zone (local variation) of the similar weld joint used in nuclear application using BI approach. For this purpose, the similar weld joint of two SS-304 LN pipe lines was investigated using BI approach.

Keywords

Ball Indentation; In Situ; Similar Weld Joint; Flow Properties; Pressurized Water Reactor; Reactor Pressure Vessel

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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