Effects of Alloy Elements on Irradiation Embrittlement of Reactor Pressure Vessel Steel: Insights from Neural Network Modelling

As one of the key components that can not be replaced in PWR, the safety and stability of reactor pressure vessel (RPV) steel determine the safety and economy of the reactor. The irradiation embrittlement of RPV steel is the limiting factors for the operation of PWR. The irradiation embrittlement of RPV steel is closely related to its alloy composition. Based on the machine learning method, the relationship between key alloy components (Cu/Mn/Ni/Si/P) and irradiation embrittlement of RPV steel was constructed. The results show that the relationship between the alloy composition and irradiation embrittlement is basically consistent with the traditional cognition. The irradiation embrittlement is sensitive to Cu content, and Cu-Ni has synergistic effect on irradiation embrittlement. In low Cu alloys, Mn-Ni and Ni-Si have synergistic effects on embrittlement.