HTGR Knowledge Base

Conference Article: The use of bimetallic welds in the THTR steam generators

Blumer, U.; Fricker, H.; Amacker, S. (Sulzer Brothers Ltd., Winterthur (Switzerland))

Abstract

Heat exchanger tubes operating under high temperatures must be designed in two qualities of material. The part which has relatively low tube wall temperature can be designed with the use of ferritic material for economic reasons. At a certain temperature level, the creep strength and the stability of this material are no longer sufficient, and an austenitic tube material must be provided for the higher temperature section of the heat exchanger bundle. This paper deals with welds between the two tubing sections, with emphasis on their application in the thorium high temperature reactor (THTR) steam generators. While the tubing of heat exchanger equipment in general needs careful design to withstand a number of different loading types, the use of bimetallic welds requires special attention to prevent it from becoming a weak spot in the design.

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key words: Gas Cooled Reactor, Nuclear Technology
Reference:
Specialists' meeting on heat exchanging components of gas-cooled reactors Duesseldorf (Germany) 16-19 Apr 1984
International Atomic Energy Agency, International Working Group on Gas-Cooled Reactors, Vienna (Austria)
IWGGCR--9, pp:571-584