The components used in light water reactors (LWR) often remain in contact with the primary coolant, whose typical temperatures and pressures are highly aggressive, therefore, initiating corrosion in most of the alloys. This article describes the corrosion behavior of zirconium alloys in water and heat flow conditions that causes irradiation on the zirconium alloy assemblies. It discusses the effect of irradiation on the microstructure and morphology of cladded linings. The article describes the impact of metallurgical parameters on the oxidation resistance of zirconium alloys. It concludes with a discussion on LWR coolant chemistry and corrosion of fuel rods in reactors.

Metal is removed from the workpiece by the mechanical action of irregularly shaped abrasive grains in all grinding operations. This article discusses three primary components of grinding wheels, namely, abrasive (the cutting tool), bond (the tool holder), and porosity or air for chip clearance and/or the introduction of coolant. It describes the compositions and applications of coated abrasives and types of grinding fluids, such as petroleum-base and mineral-base cutting oils, water-soluble oils, synthetic fluids, semisynthetic fluids, and water plus additives. The article concludes with information on different types of grinding processes, namely, rough grinding, precision grinding, surface grinding, cylindrical grinding, centerless grinding, internal grinding, and tool grinding.

Surface coatings are essential in all facilities that process nuclear materials or use nuclear fission for power generation. This article describes the coatings used in two basic types of Generation 3 nuclear reactor designs in the United States and their containment size. These reactors are the boiling water reactor (BWR) and pressurized water reactor (PWR). The article provides information on the loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA) identified as the design basis accident (DBA), which can rapidly de-water the core of an operating nuclear reactor. To avoid LOCA, both the BWR and the PWR include emergency core cooling systems. The article describes a DBA test and other coating performance parameters necessary for safety-related coating systems. It provides a detailed account of the selection criteria of coating types in a nuclear plant. The article concludes by highlighting protective coating strategies in Generation 3 Plants.

This article discusses the main materials and water chemistry characteristics of the primary and secondary water circuits of a pressurized water reactor (PWR). It reviews the corrosion issues of PWR materials and the influence of corrosion and fouling on primary and secondary circuit radiation fields. The article explains the primary side intergranular stress corrosion cracking (IGSCC) in different materials, namely, nickel-base alloys, high-strength nickel-base alloys, low-strength austenitic stainless steels, and high-strength stainless steels. The secondary side corrosion in steam generator including denting, pitting, intergranular attack and IGSCC is also discussed. The article examines laboratory studies that have resulted in models and computer codes for evaluating and predicting intergranular corrosion, and considers the remedial actions for preventing or arresting intergranular corrosion. It concludes with information on the external bolting corrosion in nuclear power reactors.

This article describes the machining operations of carbon fiber-reinforced epoxy, or carbon/epoxy thermoset composite materials, such as drilling, reaming, routing, trimming, end milling, slot milling, and facing. It reviews cutting tools for machining, including solid carbide, diamond plated, brazed diamond, diamond coated carbide, and polycrystalline cutting tools. The article also describes cutting tool materials that are used for peripheral milling, face milling, and the trimming of polymer-matrix composites.

Advances in vehicle design and technology require engine coolant technology to minimize the degradation of nonmetals and prevent the corrosion of the metals in the cooling system. This article provides a detailed discussion on the functions, operation, materials, and major components of the cooling system. It discusses various forms of corrosion that occur in cooling systems, including uniform corrosion, galvanic corrosion, crevice corrosion, pitting corrosion, intergranular corrosion, erosion corrosion, and cavitation corrosion. The article presents information on engine coolant base components and inhibitors used for corrosion prevention. It reviews the coolant performance tests recommended by ASTM, SAE, and vehicle manufacturers. The article concludes with a description on the difference between light-duty automotive and heavy-duty diesel engine coolants.

Machining tribology poses a significant challenge due to the multiple parameters that must be simultaneously considered to arrive at a cost-minimized solution in production. This article provides information required to make informed decisions about machining parameters. It describes the relationships between machining parameters, workpiece material properties, cutting forces, and the corresponding temperature field in the chip. The article provides information on tool life, with an empirical model, common wear features, and the relationship between tool life and machining cost. The cutting fluids and their effect on tool life are also discussed. The article discusses machining process dynamics and corresponding vibrations. It contains a table that provides a summary of high-pressure coolant research.

This article focuses on the basic metallurgy and machining parameters of classes of depleted and enriched uranium alloys. It provides information on the health precautions applicable to the machining of depleted uranium alloys. The article also discusses tool wear and the types of tools used in uranium alloy machining.

This article focuses on the environmentally assisted cracking (EAC) of structural materials in boiling water reactors (BWRs), reactor pressure vessels, core internals, and ancillary piping. It discusses the effects of water chemistry on materials degradation, mitigation approaches, and their impact on aging management programs. The article reviews the effects of materials, environment, and stress factors on the cracking susceptibility of ferritic and austenitic structural alloys in BWRs. It describes the methods, such as data-based life-prediction approaches and mechanisms-informed life-prediction approaches, for predicting cracking kinetics in BWRs. The article provides information on several EAC mitigation techniques for BWR components, namely material solutions, stress solutions, and environmental solutions.

This datasheet provides information on key alloy metallurgy, processing effects on physical and mechanical properties, and application characteristics of Al-Si-Cu-Mg hypereutectic casting alloys 390.0, A390.0, and B390.0. Tool lives for the machining of alloys 380 and 390 are illustrated.

This article reviews a series of serious corrosion problems that have plagued the light water reactor (LWR) industry. It discusses the complex corrosion mechanisms involved, and the development of practical engineering solutions for their mitigation. The article contains tables that present the corrosion history of LWRs, and the ten most expensive operation and maintenance costs of corrosion for a particular reactor site.

The 391-type hypereutectic aluminum-silicon alloys are hypereutectic alloys designed for applications where excellent wear resistance is needed. They are similar to the 390 family of alloys, except for a low copper content to improve castability and corrosion resistance. This datasheet provides information on key alloy metallurgy and processing effects on mechanical properties of separately cast test bars of these alloys.

This article describes the sectioning process, some general practices, common tools, and guidelines on how to select a cutting tool for a given metallographic sectioning operation. It provides a discussion on the consumable-abrasive cutting and nonconsumable-abrasive cutting methods for metallographic sectioning. Other methods, including the use of hacksaws, shears, burning torches, wire saws, and electrical discharge machining, are also reviewed. The article reviews the issues related to the specimen test location for certification work as well as process troubleshooting and component failure analysis.

This article provides a discussion on the machining guidelines that serve to improve the machinability of powder metallurgy materials. It provides a description of various cutting tool grades and tool-edge design and describes the machining conditions for common operations, namely, turning, drilling, tapping, grinding, and finishing. The article introduces a few overlooked details that can heavily influence the performance and success of the machining process. These include dwell, margin design on round tools, and proper edge hone.

This article discusses the properties of beryllium metals that require special attention when machining. It provides information on the considerations of S65 and selects 65 beryllium materials that are used for conducting tool wear studies and surface damage studies. The article highlights some of the precautions to be followed while machining beryllium metals. Information on the cutting oils, cutting tools, and speeds and feeds used in turning the beryllium are also provided. The article describes the chemical milling and photochemical machining methods that are used for etching beryllium components.

Cutting fluids play a major role in increasing productivity and reducing costs by making possible the use of higher cutting speeds, higher feed rates, and greater depths of cut. After listing the functions of cutting fluids, this article then covers the major types, characteristics, advantages and limitations of cutting and grinding fluids, such as cutting oils, water-miscible fluids, gaseous fluids, pastes, and solid lubricants along with their subtypes. It discusses the factors considered during the selection of cutting fluid, focusing on machinability (or grindability) of the material, compatibility (metallurgical, chemical, and human), and acceptability (fluid properties, reliability, and stability). The article also describes various application methods of cutting fluids and precautions that should be observed by the operator.

This article briefly reviews the various metallurgical or environmental factors that cause a weakening of the grain boundaries and, in turn, influence the occurrence of intergranular (IG) fractures. It discusses the mechanisms of IG fractures, including the dimpled IG fracture, the IG brittle fracture, and the IG fatigue fracture. The article describes some typical embrittlement mechanisms that cause the IG fracture of steels.

Plasma arc cutting (PAC) is an erosion process that utilizes a constricted arc in the form of a high-velocity jet of ionized gas to melt and sever metal in a narrow, localized area. This article discusses the process description, equipment, gases, operating sequence, process considerations, and applications of PAC. It concludes with a discussion on the safety measures associated with the PAC process.

The horsepower requirements to cut various metal alloys provide an indication of the relative ease and cost of machining, but several other important factors include cutting tool material, chip formation, cutting fluids, cutting tool wear, surface roughness, and surface integrity. This article reviews these general machining factors as well as specific cutting tool and cutting parameters for the six basic chip-forming processes of turning, shaping, milling, drilling, sawing, and broaching. Best practices for each of the six chip-forming processes are suggested for optimized machining of aluminum alloys. The article lists the inherent disadvantages of machining processes that involve compression/shear chip formation. It discusses the machining of aluminum metal-matrix composites and nontraditional machining of aluminum, such as abrasive jet, waterjet, electrodischarge, plasma arc, electrochemical, and chemical machining.

This article briefly reviews the factors that influence the occurrence of intergranular (IG) fractures. Because the appearance of IG fractures is often very similar, the principal focus is placed on the various metallurgical or environmental factors that cause grain boundaries to become the preferred path of crack growth. The article describes in more detail some typical mechanisms that cause IG fracture. It discusses the causes and effects of IG brittle cracking, dimpled IG fracture, IG fatigue, hydrogen embrittlement, and IG stress-corrosion cracking. The article presents a case history on IG fracture of steam generator tubes, where a lowering of the operating temperature was proposed to reduce failures.