Electrochemical Corrosion Testing of Neutron Absorber Materials Page: 3 of 28
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Introduction
The Yucca Mountain Project (YMP) has been directed by DOE-RW to develop a new
repository waste package design based on the transport, aging, and disposal canister (TAD)
system concept. A neutron poison material for fabrication of the internal spent nuclear fuel
(SNF) baskets for these canisters needs to be identified. A material that has been used for
criticality control in wet and dry storage of spent nuclear fuel is borated stainless steel.1 These
stainless products are available as an ingot metallurgy plate product with a molybdenum
addition2 and a powder metallurgy product3 that meets the requirements of ASTM A887, Grade
A. A new Ni-Cr-Mo-Gd alloy4 has been developed by the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) with
its research partners (Sandia National Laboratory and Lehigh University) with DOE-EM funding
provided by the National Spent Nuclear Fuel Program (NSNFP). This neutron absorbing alloy
will be used to fabricate the SNF baskets in the DOE standardized canister. The INL has
designed the DOE Standardized Spent Nuclear Fuel Canisters for the handling, interim storage,
transportation, and disposal in the national repository of DOE owned spent nuclear fuel (SNF). A
corrosion testing program is required to compare these materials in environmental conditions
representative of a breached waste canister.
This report will summarize the results of crevice corrosion tests for three alloys in
solutions representative of ionic compositions inside the waste package should a breech occur.
The three alloys in these tests are Neutronit A9782 (ingot metallurgy, hot rolled), Neutrosorb
304B4 Grade A3 (powder metallurgy, hot rolled), and Ni-Cr-Mo-Gd alloy4 (ingot metallurgy, hot
rolled).
Material Descriptions
Borated Stainless Steel
Physical Metallurgy
The borated stainless steel alloys solidify as primary austenite with a terminal eutectic
constituent with the form Fe2B, Cr2B with the exact composition dependent on the initial boron
level6 as shown in Figure 1. The austenite matrix is a ductile phase and the dispersed secondary
phase is a comparatively brittle compound.
1 "Standard Specification for Borated Stainless Steel Plate, Sheet, and Strip for Nuclear Application," ASTM A887-
89, American Society for Testing and Materials (2004).
2 Bohler Bleche GmbH, P.O. Box 28, Murzzuschlag, Austria
3 Carpenter Technology Corp. P.O Box 14662, Reading, PA
4 "Standard Specification for Low-Carbon Nickel-Chromium-Molybdenum-Gadolinium Alloy Plate, Sheet, and
Strip," ASTM B932-04, American Society for Testing and Materials (2004).
5 Preliminary Design Specification for Department of Energy Standardized Spent Nuclear Fuel Canisters, Volume I
- Design Specification, DOE/SNF/REP-011, Revision 3, August 17, 1999.
6 H.J. Goldschmidt, "Effect of Boron Additions to Austenitic Stainless Steels Part II, Solubility of Boron in 18% Cr,
15% Ni Austenitic Steel," Journal of the Iron and Steel Institute, November 1971, page 910.2
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Lister, Tedd; Mizia, Ron; Birk, Sandra; Matteson, Brent & Tian, Hongbo. Electrochemical Corrosion Testing of Neutron Absorber Materials, report, October 1, 2006; [Idaho Falls, Idaho]. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc880014/m1/3/: accessed March 28, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.