Impact Testing of Stainless Steel Material at Cold Temperatures

Stainless steels are used for the construction of numerous spent nuclear fuel or radioactive material containers that may be subjected to high strains and moderate strain rates during accidental drop events. Mechanical characteristics of these base materials and their welds under dynamic loads in the strain rate range of concern are not well documented. However, a previous paper [1] reported on impact testing and analysis results performed at the Idaho National Laboratory using 304/304L and 316/316L stainless steel base material specimens at room and elevated temperatures. The goal of the work presented herein is to add recently completed impact tensile testing results at −20°F conditions for dual-marked 304/304L and 316/316L stainless steel material specimens (hereafter referred to as 304L and 316L, respectively). Recently completed welded material impact testing at −20°F, room, 300°F, and 600°F is also reported. Utilizing a drop-weight impact test machine and 1/4-inch to 1/2-inch thick dog-bone shaped test specimens, the impact tests achieved strain rates in the 4 to 40 per second range, depending upon the material temperature. Elevated true stress-strain curves for these materials reflecting varying strain rates and temperatures are presented herein.