09434 A Study of Stress Corrosion Cracking and Localized Corrosion of Carbon Steel in Nitrate Based Nuclear Waste

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Product Number: 51300-09434-SG

ISBN: 09434 2009 CP

Author: K. Boomer, J. Beavers, G.Frankel, C.Brossia, G.Edgemon, C.Scott, B. Wiersma, F. Gui and L. Stock

Publication Date: 2009

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The Hanford tank reservation contains approximately 50 million gallons of liquid legacy radioactive waste from cold war weapons production, which is stored in 177 underground storage tanks. The tanks will be in use until waste processing operations have been completed. The wastes tend to be high pH (over 10) and nitrate based. Under alkaline conditions carbon steels tend to be passive and undergo relatively slow rates of uniform corrosion. However, the presence of nitrate and other aggressive species, can lead to pitting and stress corrosion cracking. This work is a continuation of previous work that investigated the propensity of steels to suffer pitting and stress corrosion cracking in various waste simulants. The focus of this work is the waste from Tank 241-AP-105. The waste is high in nitrate, but low in inhibitory nitrite, making it a candidate for localized corrosion problems. This experimental work involved slow strain rate and electrochemical testing. Initial work indicated a propensity for interfacial corrosion at the liquid/vapor interface. The results of the current work will be discussed, and compared to work previously presented.

Keywords: stress corrosion cracking, interfacial corrosion, carbon steel, nitrate, nitrite, pH, Hanford, nuclear waste