July 2022

ORNL Report

The Fracture Toughness of Nuclear Graphites Grades

By:
Burchell, Timothy D; Erdman III, Donald L; Lowden, Richard R; Hunter, James A; Hannel, Cara C
Publication Date:
July 2022

Abstract

New measurements of graphite mode I critical stress intensity factor, KIc (commonly referred to as the fracture toughness) and the mode II critical shear stress intensity, KIIc, are reported and compared with prior data for KIc and KIIc. The new data are for graphite grades PCEA, IG-110 and 2114. Variations of KIc and acoustic emission (AE) data with graphite texture are reported and discussed. The Codes and Standards applications of fracture toughness, KIc, data are also discussed. A specified minimum value for nuclear graphite KIc is recommended.


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