An experimental study of the residual stresses,and their alleviation,in tube to tube-sheet welds of industrial boilers

Micro-crack development in welds, including repair welding, of the tube to tube-sheet region of industrial boilers is not an uncommon problem. Often such cracking is exacerbated by stress corrosion cracking or thermal fatigue, in which the residual stresses associated with welding can play a major role. In this paper, a custom built, but robust, air abrasive centre hole drilling facility was used; which induced negligible machining stresses. This system was modified to attach to the (vertical) tube sheets of boilers on site, and to sample residual stresses in the tube to tube-sheet welds, of both conventional circumferential fillet welds of protruding tubes as well as recessed ‘J’ configuration type. The experimental test programme evaluated transverse and circumferential profiles of the residual stresses. Global post-weld heat treatment (PWHT) of a whole boiler, indicated substantial (75%) reductions in the tensile peak residual stress. A localised PWHT technique, using a 1 kW incandescent light source inserted into the tube, easily achieved the requisite temperatures and heating rates, but led to significant increases in local residual stresses. The implications of such localised PWHT techniques on residual stress and consequent service life, are therefore of vital importance with regard to plant integrity and safety.     

锅炉水冷壁爆管分析

锅炉水冷壁发生了钝边和无明显塑性变形爆管。通过对失效的锅炉水冷壁管进行宏观检查、化学分析和金相试验以及X射线衍射分析，发现该管向火侧外壁(烟气侧)发生了导致管壁严重减薄的高温硫腐蚀和内壁(水侧)垢下酸性腐蚀，而垢下腐蚀产物为氢原子渗入基体与Fe3C反应生成的CH4，由它引发沿晶微裂纹，最终由氢致裂纹引起管材失效。     

火电机组锅炉受热面合金烟气腐蚀与应力协同作用失效行为研究进展

为响应国家提出的2030年碳达峰及2060年碳中和的目标, 火电发电机组蒸汽参数(如蒸汽温度与压力)尚需进一步提高, 这无疑为火电机组的安全运行带来严峻挑战。作为影响火电机组锅炉安全服役的两个重要因素, "高温烟气腐蚀"与"应力"协同作用导致锅炉受热面材料失效常被简化或独立研究。本文首先从烟气腐蚀和应力失效着手, 简述锅炉受热面合金烟气腐蚀机理, 分析影响烟气腐蚀性能的材料因素(金属种类、合金元素、金属表面状态)及环境因素(温度、腐蚀气氛及煤灰成分), 并从腐蚀与应力相互影响的角度, 讨论火电机组受热面合金在高温烟气腐蚀与应力协同作用下的失效行为。此类合金虽然在高温烟气腐蚀环境中不存在应力腐蚀开裂倾向, 但腐蚀产物会显著影响材料的高温蠕变及持久寿命。同时, 应力造成的缺陷会改变材料的腐蚀过程。因而, 本文重点介绍了火电机组锅炉环境下, 高温烟气腐蚀与应力协同作用对不同材料性能的影响, 并以18-8型奥氏体钢Super304H为例, 完整分析从烟气腐蚀行为到腐蚀与应力耦合作用行为。最后, 对未来烟气腐蚀与应力之间的相互作用及协同作用下材料的失效机理进行展望。     

Modelling scale failure in tension (fracture and spallation)

Abstract

The paper addresses some important issues that relate to the prediction of through-thickness cracking and spallation that can occur in oxide layers subject to local tensile stresses that arise during cooling following periods in service where the oxide layers form and thicken. The issues are addressed in the context of steam corrosion of ferrous substrates that leads to the formation of three corrosion layers, namely, spinel, magnetite and haematite (on the outer exposed surface). For this system, the magnetite layer develops tensile stresses that lead to through-thickness cracking in this layer. The first issue concerns the failure criteria that should be used when predicting the formation of through-thickness cracking. A popular approach is to assume that an oxide layer develops through-thickness cracks when a critical tensile stress (the oxide strength) or strain (the oxide strain to failure) is encountered. Another approach applies fracture mechanics principles to defects that are assumed to exist in the oxide layer, although there is great uncertainty regarding the relevant defect size distributions that control behaviour. A third lower bound (and conservative) approach, that is discussed in some detail, is to consider the energetics of steady state through-thickness cracking that avoids the fracture energy issue of needing to know the defect size that initiates through-thickness cracking. The applicability of the three approaches is discussed with regard to predicting the progressive growth of through-thickness cracking in the magnetite layer, and the importance of residual stresses. Example predictions are made using a proven analytical stress transfer model that enables simulations to be made of progressive through-thickness cracking in the magnetite layer.

The second issue that is discussed concerns the development of interface cracking from through-thickness cracks that can lead to the spallation of oxide layers. One key factor is the influence of the spacing of through-thickness cracks that can determine the size of oxide fragments that might be released during spallation. Another key factor is the determination of conditions for steady-state debond growth that is a critical factor when considering conditions for spallation of oxide layers.

Issues that are considered to require further investigation are highlighted.     

Fatigue Failure of 321 Stainless Steel Superheater Tubes from a Thermal Incinerator

Several boiler superheater tubes showed circumferential cracking at weld seams after 2 years in noncontinuous service (several shutdowns). On-site inspection revealed that several tubes were cracked and leaked; while many others were cracked, however, the severity was less pronounced. Two types of superheater tubes samples were collected: one with butt-welded tubes and the other with fillet-welded sleeve. The latter was found to be out of the boiler fireplace, and the sleeve was used as tubing support to the boiler shell. Detailed investigation showed that the butt-welded tubes contained circumferential fatigue cracks that initiated from the internal surface. The cracks initiated in the heat-affected zone and propagated as a result of tube vibration. The variations in the tube internal diameter and tube wall thickness are expected to play a role in tube fatigue failure. On the other hand, tubes with fillet-weld sleeve showed circumferential cracking as a result of fatigue crack initiation from weld defects on the tube external surface. The high vibration during several unscheduled shutdowns in addition to several other factors such as variations in tube inside diameter, wall thickness, and weld defects resulted in the initiation and propagation of fatigue cracks and premature failure. White deposits, similar to those observed when boiler tubes failed by caustic exposure, were seen in the vicinity of the tube cracks. Therefore, it was difficult to confirm whether the boiler tubes failed because of the fatigue cracks or because of the caustic salts (pH control chemical).     

Assessment of service exposed boiler tubes

Boiler tubes in power plants have finite life because of prolonged exposure to high temperature, stress and aggressive environment. Service-exposed platen superheater and reheater tubes (148,900 h) made of 2.25Cr-1 Mo steels in a 120 MW boiler of a thermal power plant were evaluated for remnant life. The investigation included hot tensile tests, hardness measurement, dimensional measurement, microscopy and creep tests. Experimentally determined yield and ultimate tensile strength, and estimated 10,000–100,000 h rupture strength in the temperature range 520–580 °C, exhibited a decreasing trend with increasing temperature. Microstructural study did not reveal any significant degradation in terms of creep cavities, cracks, graphitization, etc. Analysis of tensile and stress rupture data revealed that although there was degradation of the tubes due to prolonged service exposure in terms of the ultimate tensile strength values, stress rupture plots showed that the service exposed superheater and reheater tubes could remain in service for a length of more than 10 years at the operating hoop stress of 40 MPa/540 °C, provided no localised damage in the form of cracks or dents develop.     

Failure analysis of the wall tubes of a water-tube boiler

An industrial case history of the failure of the evaporator (water wall) tubes of a water-tube boiler is presented in this study. After two years in service, a leak was detected in one of the tubes over its bent section with pitting corrosion on its internal surface. Later on, the same symptoms were discovered in other tubes of the same boiler, and several tubes were extracted for failure analysis. On the basis of visual inspection, chemical analysis, microstructural examination, hardness measurements, and residual stress measurements via X-ray diffraction (XRD), the failure mechanism of the tubes was identified as stress corrosion cracking (SCC). In this paper, the results obtained from the experimental analysis are summarized, and finite element (FE) models are used to predict the residual stress due to the bending of the tube and the operational stress at the moment of failure. It was found that tensile residual stress from an inadequate stress relief treatment prior to service and high concentration of dissolved oxygen in the feed water were the main reasons for the premature failure of the boiler tubes by SCC.     

Effect of tube spinning and subsequent heat treatments on strength,microstructure and residual stress state of AISI/SAE type 4140 steel

Abstract

In the present study, the effects of deformation percentage (23, 30, 50 and 66%) and subsequent stress relief and tempering heat treatments on the mechanical properties, residual stress state and microstructure of AISI/SAE type 4140 steel tubes manufactured by forward spinning were evaluated. Mechanical properties were determined by means of hardness and tensile tests. The tangential component of the surface residual stresses was determined by a slitting method. Plastic deformation of the metal during spinning refined and elongated the grains in the direction of metal flow, following a spiral path, resulting in improved mechanical properties. Tensile and yield strengths, as well as hardness, were all increased as a function of increasing percentage deformation. With stress relieving, the strength values were enhanced, whereas a slight decrease in hardness took place. Stress relieving did not change the microstructure considerably, whereas tempering resulted in a partially recrystallised microstructure, removing the effect of plastic deformation. The tangential residual stresses were tensile, and those of the as deformed tubes increased with an increasing amount of deformation up to 50%, then tended to decrease. The magnitude of the residual stresses decreased with stress relieving heat treatment, while tempering reduced the residual stresses to negligible levels.     

Evaluation of stress intensity factors for multiple surface cracks in bi-material tubes

This paper presents stress intensity factors (SIFs) of multiple semi-elliptical surface cracks in bi-material tubes subjected to internal pressure by boundary element method. In this case the water-tube boiler with oxide scale formed on the inner surface due to prolonged exposure at elevated temperature is considered as the bi-material tubes. Variations of modulus of elasticity and thickness for the oxide scale are used to evaluate their effects on the stress intensity factors. The increasing of thickness of the oxide scale causes decreasing values of the normalized stress intensity factor as the modulus of elasticity for the oxide scale is greater than that of the tube metal. Conversely, if the modulus of elasticity for the oxide scale is smaller, the increasing of thickness of the scale would also give increasing values of the normalized stress intensity factor.     

Prediction and real-time monitoring techniques for corrosion characterisation in furnaces

Abstract

Combustion modifications to minimise NO_x emissions have led to the existence of reducing conditions in furnaces. As regulations demand lower NO_x levels, it is possible (to a degree) to continue to address these requirements with increased levels of combustion air staging. However, in most practical situations, a number of adverse impacts prevent the application of deep combustion air staging. One of the more important limitations is the increased corrosion that can occur on wall tubes exposed to fuel rich combustion environments. Current boiler corrosion monitoring techniques rely on ultrasonic tube wall thickness measurements typically conducted over 12 to 24 month intervals during scheduled outages. Corrosion coupons are also sometimes used; typically require considerable exposure time to provide meaningful data. The major drawback of these methods is that corrosion information is obtained after the damage has been done. Management of boiler waterwall loss and system optimisation therefore requires a real-time indication of corrosion rate in susceptible regions of the furnace. This paper describes the results of a program of laboratory trials and field investigations and considers the use of an on-line technology in combination with innovative applications, also modelling and precision metrology to better manage waterwall loss in fossil fuelled boilers while minimising NO_x emissions.     

Failure Analysis of Welded Radiant Tubes Made of Cast Heat-Resisting Steel

Radiant tubes made of cast heat-resisting steels were cracked after 4 years of operation at 1020 °C temperature in hydrocarbon cracking furnace. Optical microscopy of the tubes showed that there was extensive precipitation and intermetallic compound formation especially as brittle networks with progressive reduction in toughness and resistance to thermal and mechanical stresses. SEM and EDS analysis proved both decarburization and oxidation on interior and exterior surfaces. Apart from cracking due to long-term heating, the tubes experienced high temperature creep. HAZ cracking after welding of cracked and/or creeped tubes due to formation of brittle carbide networks was overcome by localized solution heat treatment followed by fast dry air cooling. Localized dissolution of carbide networks and intermetallic compounds resulted in lower strain microstructures and enhanced resistance of parts to thermal and mechanical stresses during repair welding. It is evident that localized solution heat treating other than lowering strains can cause the precipitates to be more uniformly and finely distributed. Fast dry air cooling rate after solution heat treating and similar cooling after welding can help to control precipitation of carbides. Detailed non-destructive testing after welding along with tensile testing proved that post-weld cracking was controlled.     

沥青混合料低温临界开裂温度的确定

为了同时考虑沥青混合料在降温过程中温度应力的累积和松弛作用,确定临界开裂温度,对试件进行了线收缩系数试验,并利用间接拉伸试验确定其抗拉强度和蠕变柔量,由蠕变柔量和松弛模量的关系得到松弛模量的Prony系列表达式;由Boltzmann叠加原理,得到温度应力公式,计算出不同降温速率下产生的温度应力,根据低温抗拉强度曲线,确定出沥青混合料的临界开裂温度,并对结果予以验证。结果表明:该方法考虑了应力累积和松弛二者的综合作用,能够较好地反映沥青混合料的低温开裂特性,其计算结果与约束试件温度应力试验结果相近;该方法不仅适用于恒定降温速率,还适用于现场连续变速降温工况;随温度的降低或降温速率的增加沥青混合料内部温度应力累积速度加快,临界开裂温度随降温速率增加而升高。      

Failure of evaporator tubes initiated by lamellar tearing during the commissioning of a waste heat recovery boiler

Successive failures of several new evaporator tubes during commissioning and trial run of a waste heat recovery boiler has been analyzed. The evaporator tubes are cold bent into U-shape and subsequently TIG welded to a 24-mm thick wear plate on either sides of the tube immediately adjacent to the bend. The failed samples showed stepped longitudinal cracks along the rolling direction and parallel to the weld fusion boundary at the fireside surface of the inner bend of the tube, prominently at the center of the bend. It was found that the failure of the evaporator tubes at the tube bends was initiated by lamellar tearing because of inherent defects in the material (segregation leading to banded structure), improper processing of material (inclusions with high aspect ratios along the rolling direction) and accelerated by high transverse shrinkage stresses over the entire bend portion of the tube introduced by the weld. The pre-existing fine cracks in the welded evaporator tube initiated by lamellar tearing have subsequently opened up during service when the total strain in the region increased because of steam pressure resulting in catastrophic failure of the tubes. Contrary to expectation, many of the elongated inclusions were found to be iron oxide scales and only few were manganese sulfide stringers enveloped by iron oxide scales. The iron oxide inclusions were resolved from the manganese sulfide by scanning electron microscopy and EDS spot analysis of the inclusions.     

Chloride-induced stress corrosion cracking of furnace burner tubes

The burner tubes (316SS) of an ethylene cracking furnace in a Saudi petrochemical plant experienced repeated premature failures. One failed sample was investigated by chemical and microstructural analytical techniques to find out the failure cause and provide preventive measures. The results indicate that the burner tube failed due to chloride-induced stress corrosion cracking (SCC). Chloride could be due to the contamination coming from the ambient industrial environment. The forming process (bending and drawing) of the tubes prior to installation introduced residual tensile stresses necessary for SCC. It is recommended to stress relieve (or shot peen) the tubes following the forming process, or alternatively apply protective coatings (chloride-free) to prevent contamination. Periodic cleaning of the tube exterior is necessary.     

Root cause analysis of stress corrosion at tube-to-tubesheet joints of a waste heat boiler

Leakage at the tube-to-tubesheet joints occurred in a waste heat boiler. The mode and the root cause of the failure were investigated by chemical composition analysis of the tube material, metallographic structure and crack observation, and corrosion product analysis of the damaged tubes, as well as the operation condition examination of the waste heat boiler. Results revealed that failure of the tubes occurred due to the stress corrosion cracking (SCC), which was caused by tensile stress and chloride-buildup in the narrow and long gap between the tube and tubesheet hole. The gap formation was further analyzed by comparison of the minimum expansion pressure from the common formula provided by the manufacturer, with that from finite element method computations. It is found that the minimum expansion pressure used in manufacture is small and cannot eliminate the initial gap. Meanwhile, the enrichment of chloride in the gap was briefly discussed.     

Influence of retrogression and reaging on microstructure and properties of 8090 Al–Li alloy

Abstract

An investigation was made into the influence of a retrogression and reaging treatment on the microstructure, tensile properties, and stress corrosion cracking resistance of 8090 Al–Li alloy. The results show that retrogression of the material at 230°C for 40 min or 325°C for 1·5 min, and then reaging to the peak aged condition, can result in an improved combination of tensile strength and stress corrosion cracking resistance. Through retrogression and reaging treatment, the alloy almost achieves the strength of the peak aged state and the stress corrosion cracking resistance of the overaged state. Transmission electron microscopy indicates that the δ′ phase dissolves during retrogression and reprecipitates during reaging, thus increasing the strength. The T₂ phase precipitates and grows during both retrogression and reaging, which results in the increase of stress corrosion cracking resistance.

MST/1670     

Analysis of the fatigue failure of a mountain bike front shock

We present an analysis of a mountain bike front shock failure. The failure of the 1-year-old shock occurred catastrophically as the bike was ridden off of a 1-m drop. The failure was the result of fast fracture through both shock tubes at the location where the tubes were press fit into the shock upper crown. Examination of the fracture surfaces of the tubes revealed regions of fatigue crack growth that nearly penetrated the entire thickness of both tubes. An estimate of the forces during use, coupled with stress analysis, revealed three stresses near the fracture site—axial compression, bending, and hoop stresses. During operation, the axial compressive stress is negligible while the hoop and bending stresses are significant. Based on fracture mechanics, and an estimate of the bending stress from a 1-m drop, it is confirmed that the fatigue cracks present on the fracture surface were large enough to induce fast fracture. Prior to the existence of the fatigue cracks, the stresses were magnified locally near the fracture site by a significant stress concentration caused by the sharp transition from the shock tube to the crown. The fatigue cracks initiated at a circumferential location in the tube commensurate with high tensile bending stress and the stiffest region of the crown (highest stress concentration). Based on the evidence, the most probable cause of the bike shock fatigue failure was the shock design, which facilitated high local stresses during use.     

Stress-corrosion cracking of indium tin oxide coated polyethylene terephthalate for flexible optoelectronic devices

Stress corrosion cracking of transparent conductive layers of indium tin oxide (ITO), sputtered on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates, is an issue of paramount importance in flexible optoelectronic devices. These components, when used in flexible device stacks, can be in contact with acid containing pressure-sensitive adhesives or with conductive polymers doped in acids. Acids can corrode the brittle ITO layer, stress can cause cracking and delamination, and stress-corrosion cracking can cause more rapid failure than corrosion alone.The combined effect of an externally-applied mechanical stress to bend the device and the corrosive environment provided by the acid is investigated in this work. We show that acrylic acid which is contained in many pressure-sensitive adhesives can cause corrosion of ITO coatings on PET. We also investigate and report on the combined effect of external mechanical stress and corrosion on ITO-coated PET composite films. Also, it is shown that the combination of stress and corrosion by acrylic acid can cause ITO cracking to occur at stresses less than a quarter of those needed for failure with no corrosion. In addition, the time to failure, under ~ 1% tensile strain can reduce the total time to failure by as much as a third.     

Retrogression and re-aging of 7010 open die forgings

Abstract

Open die forgings of the aluminium alloy 7010 (DTD5636) have been retrogressed and re-aged at 200 and 240°C to improve the combination of strength and stress corrosion cracking resistance. Vickers hardness, electrical conductivity, tensile, plane strain fracture toughness and constant crack opening displacement stress corrosion cracking test data are reported. A retrogression treatment of 40 min at 200°C produces material with T6 levels of strength and fracture toughness, in combination with T74 levels of stress corrosion cracking resistance.     

The influence of hygrothermal conditions on the damage processes in quasi-isotropic carbon/epoxy laminates

The effects of hygrothermal conditions on damage development in quasi-isotropic carbon-fiber/epoxy laminates are described. First, monotonic and loading/unloading tensile tests were conducted on dry and wet specimens at ambient and high temperatures to compare the stress/strain response and damage development. The changes in the Young's modulus and Poisson's ratio were obtained experimentally from the monotonic tensile tests. The critical stresses for transverse cracking and delamination for the above three conditions are compared. The delamination area is measured by using scanning acoustic microscopy (SAM) at various loads to discuss the effects of delamination on the nonlinear stress/strain behavior. Next, the stress distributions under tensile load including hygrothermal residual stresses are computed by a finite-element code and their effects on damage initiation are discussed. Finally, a simple model for the prediction of the Young's modulus of a delaminated specimen is proposed. It is found that moisture increases the critical stresses for transverse cracking and delamination by reducing the residual stresses while high temperature decreases the critical stresses in spite of relaxation of the residual stresses. The results of the finite-element analysis provide some explanations for the onset of transverse cracking and delamination. The Young's modulus predicted by the present model agrees with experimental results better than that predicted by conventional models.