High-Chromium Ferritic and Martensitic Steels for Nuclear Applications
Ronald L. Klueh and Donald R. Harries
Ferritic and martensitic steels have a long history of use in the power-generation industry as boiler material. Chromium-molybdenum steels originated in the 1920s, and the 9-12Cr steels, which are the primary steels of interest here, were first used in the 1940s. Beginning in the 1960s, the steels became of interest for use as fuel cladding and duct materials for the liquid metal fast reactor. This was followed in the late 1970s by the steels being considered as structural materials for first wall and blanket structures of a fusion reactor. These applications require the steels to be resistant to irradiation damage by high-energy neutrons, in addition to the need for elevated-temperature strength. Just as alloy development was required for the earlier application, development was required for the nuclear application, development that is still in progress.
The primary subject of this book is the development of the ferritic/martensitic steels for nuclear applications. However, for complete understanding of the steels for nuclear applications, it is first necessary to examine the basic properties of the steels, because that information is necessary as a baseline for understanding the irradiation effects. Much of the book involves such baseline information with the hope that this information will be of interest to readers beyond those involved in nuclear applications.