• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.39-47
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• 2002

Performed here is an assessment study for deterministic fracture mechanics analysis of a pressurized thermal shock(PTS). The PTS event means an event or transient in pressurized water reactors(PWRs) causing severe overcooling(thermal shock) concurrent with or followed by significant pressure in the reactor vessel. The problems consisting of two transients and 10 cracks are solved and maximum stress intensity factors and maximum allowable nil-ductility reference temperatures are calculated. Their results are compared each other to address the general characteristics between transients, crack types and analysis methods. The effects of elastic-plastic material behavior and clad coating on the inner surface are explored.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
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• v.25 no.10
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• pp.1567-1574
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• 2001

In order to operate an RPV safely it is necessary to keep the pressure-temperature (P-T) limit during the heatup and cooldown process. While the ASME Code provides the P-T limit curve for safe operation, this limit curve has been prepared under conservative assumptions In this paper the effects of conservative assumptions involved in the P-T limit curve specified in the ASME Code Sec. XI were investigated. Three different parameters the crack depth the cladding thickness and the cooling rate, were reviewed based on 3-D finite element analyses. Also the constraint effect on P-T limit curve generation was investigated based on J- T approach. It was shown that the crack depth and the constraint effect change the safe region in P-T limit curve significantly Therefore it is recommended to prepare a more precise P-T limit curve based on finite element analysis to obtain P-T limit for safe operation of an RPV.