The electrochemical potentiokinetic reactivation (EPR) test technique was applied to the determination of sensitization in a neutron-irradiated (420°C, 10 dpa) titanium-modified austenitic stainless steel. Miniaturized specimens (3 mm diam by 0.25 mm thick) in solution-annealed and 25% cold-worked conditions were tested. The degree of sensitization (DOS) was calculated in terms of the reactivation charge (Pa). Results indicated the occurrence of radiation-induced sensitization when compared to control specimens thermally aged at the irradiation temperature. Post-EPR examination of the specimen surfaces showed etching across the face of each grain as well as at grain boundaries. This indicates that the Pa value normalized by the total grain boundary area, which is an accepted EPR-DOS criterion, cannot be directly used as an indicator of the DOS to determine the susceptibility of this irradiated material to intergranular stress corrosion cracking (IGSCC). Further investigations are necessary to correlate the results in this study to the IGSCC susceptibility of the irradiated stainless steel.

Subject
Scanning electron microscopy, Test methods, Materials, Intergranular stress corrosion cracking, Chromium, Irradiation, Irradiation assisted stress corrosion cracking, Optical micrographs, Specimen preparation, Sensitization, Stainless steel, Grain boundary, Grain
Keywords:
Stress corrosion cracking, sensitization, austenitic stainless steel, electrochemical measurement, fusion reactor, neutron irradiation, radiation-induced segregation
© 1990 Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP). All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of AMPP. Positions and opinions advanced in this work are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of AMPP. Responsibility for the content of the work lies solely with the author(s).
1990
Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP)
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