Environmentally-assisted cracking of type 316L austenitic stainless steel in low pressure hydrogen steam environments

A low pressure, superheated hydrogen-steam system has been used to accelerate the oxidation kinetics while keeping the electrochemical conditions similar to those of the primary water in a pressurized water reactor. The initiation has been investigated using a Constant Extension Rate Tensile (CERT) test. Tests were performed on flat tapered specimens made from Type 316L austenitic stainless steel with strain rates of 2×10^-6 and 2×10^-8 ms^-1 at room temperature and at an elevated temperature of 350 °C. R = 1/6 was chosen as a more oxidizing environment and R = 6 was selected as a more reducing environment, where the parameter R represents the ratio between the oxygen partial pressure at the Ni/NiO transition and the oxygen partial pressure. Different exposures (1 day and 5 days) prior to loading were investigated post-test evaluation by scanning electron microscopy.