Failure Analysis of a Sodium, Inconel 617 Heat Pipe.

Abstract

A 4.57-meter (15-foot) sodium heat pipe, Inconel 617, was examined following failure. The sodium was exposed to the atmosphere following initial testing. Testing was resumed following attempts to reprocess the sodium by high-temperature outgassing. The pipe failed with intergranular cracks which completely penetrated the heat pipe wall leaking sodium to the atmosphere. Carbide precipitates and some grain boundary impurities were found in the cracked regions, which, along with the oxygen-contaminated sodium, embrittled the material. Thermal gradient-produced stresses during start-up coupled with embrittled grain boundaries appears to have resulted in the failure of the Inconel 617 sodium heat pipe. Keywords: microstructure; microprobe analysis. (Author)

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Sep 01, 1985
Accession Number
ADA163177

Entities

People

  • Dean L. Jacobson
  • J. H. Wang

Organizations

  • Arizona State University

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Advanced Electronics
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Space

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Aeronautical Laboratories
  • Air Force
  • Alloys
  • Chemistry
  • Classification
  • Energy
  • Energy Storage
  • Energy Systems
  • Engineering
  • Failure Analysis
  • Governments
  • Grain Boundaries
  • Heat Pipes
  • Liquid Metals
  • Materials
  • Metals
  • Optical Materials

Readers

  • Analytical Chemistry
  • Combustion and Flow Dynamics.
  • Materials Science (Mechanical Engineering).