The influence of specimen geometry and notch on the hydrogen embrittlement of an SA372 steel for pressure vessels was investigated in this study. A slow strain-rate tensile (SSRT) test after the electrochemical hydrogen charging method was conducted on four types of tensile specimens with different directions, shapes (plate, round), and notches. The plate-type specimen showed a significant decrease in hydrogen embrittlement resistance owing to its large surface-to-volume ratio, compared to the round-type specimen. It is well established that most of the hydrogen distributes over the specimen surface when it is electrochemically charged. For the round-type specimens, the notched specimen showed increased hydrogen susceptibility compared with the unnotched one. A notch causes stress concentration and thus generates lots of dislocations in the locally deformed regions during the SSRT test. The solute hydrogen weakens the interactions between these dislocations by promoting the shielding effect of stress fields, which is called hydrogen-enhanced localized plasticity mechanisms. These results provide crucial insights into the relationship between specimen geometry and hydrogen embrittlement resistance.

During normal and off-normal conditions, the concrete structures of dry storage system for spent nuclear fuel must maintain structural integrity. A stress-strain curve is the most important key factor for structural integrity evaluation. The ASTM C39 specifies the concrete specimen geometry for the static compression test. However, there is no standard specimen size for intermediate stain rate, and it is not easy to maintain consistency among all test results because the failure tendency is different from each other. In order to account for the strain rate effects on concrete, the dynamic increase factor (DIF) is conventionally addressed by dividing dynamic strength by static strength. However, the DIF value considers only the strength of concrete and does not describe the overall behavior of concrete, such as a stress-strain relation. The objective of this study is to propose proper specimen geometry for the concrete dynamic compression test by several parametric study. The static compression simulation results with the specimen specified in ASTM C39 showed the constant strain distribution in a cylindrical specimen. However, as the strain rate increases, the strain state in specimen showed a nonuniform with the same geometry of ASTM C39. The non-uniform strain state in the specimen deteriorates the consistency and accuracy of the compression test. Therefore, we presented the specimen shape and size to form a uniform strain state through radial direction by drilling a hole in the axial direction. We analyzed two specimens using ABAQUS with the concrete damaged plasticity model, one with a hole at the center and the other without the hole. As a result, the strain distribution became more uniform than the specimen without the hole. Based on the results, we proposed the specimen shape and size for the intermediate strain rate compression test.

Graphite has hexagonal closed packing structure with two bonding characteristics of van der Waals bonding between the carbon layers at c axis, and covalent bonding in the carbon layer at a and b axis. Graphite has high tolerant to the extreme conditions of high temperature and neutron irradiations rather than any other materials of metals and ceramics. However, carbon elements easily react with oxygen at as low as 400C. Considering the increasing production of today of hydrogen and electricity with a nuclear reactor, study of oxidation characteristics of graphite is very important, and essential for the life evaluation and design of the nuclear reactor. Since the oxidation behaviors of graphite are dependent on the shapes of testing specimen, critical care is required for evaluation of nuclear reactor graphite materials. In this work, oxidation rate and amounts of the isotropic graphite (IG-110, Toyo Carbon), currently being used for the Koran nuclear reactor, are investigated at various temperature. Oxidation process or principle of graphite was figured out by measuring the oxidation rate, and relation between oxidation rate and sample shape are understood. In the oxidation process, shape effect of volume, surface area, and surface to volume ratio are investigated at 600℃, based on the sample of ASTM C 1179-91.