Abstract
Tungsten components inside fusion reactors are subjected to extreme conditions, including an exceptionally high heat flux. This loading induces high stress levels, that may lead to brittle fracture. The current work aims to provide novel insights by relating the risk for brittle fracture to the tungsten microstructure and loadings conditions. To this end, a crystal plasticity framework is adopted with a temperature dependent slip resistance. The required parameters are obtained from experimental data in the literature. The risk for brittle fracture is assessed by means of Beremin's weakest-link theory. The brittle-to-ductile transition temperature (BDTT) found in literature can be accurately described with the presented framework. The simulation results reveal that the BDTT decreases linearly with the volume fraction of recrystallized grains in the microstructure. It is also shown that a sharp interface between rolled and recrystallized microscopic grains is more favourable in terms of risk for brittle fracture.
Original language | English |
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Article number | 015005 |
Number of pages | 24 |
Journal | Modelling and Simulation in Materials Science and Engineering |
Volume | 29 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Jan 2021 |
Keywords
- Brittle-to-ductile transition
- Crystal plasticity
- Tungsten
- Weakest-link theory