• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.598-607
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• 1992

The environment degradation of structural steel under high temperature is one of the key phenomena governing the availability and life of plant. This degradation resulted from the microstructural changes due to the long exposure at high temperature affect the mechanical properties such as creep strength and toughness. For instance, boiler tube materials usually tend to degrade, after long term operation, by precipitates, spherodizing, coarsening, and change in chemical composition of carbides. In this study, the material degradation under high temperature exposure was investigated by evaluating the carbide precipitation. The electrochemical polarization method was facilitated to investigate the precipitation and coarsening of carbides. It was shown by the modified electrochemical potentiokinetic reactivation (EPR) tests that the passivation of Mo-rich carbides did not occur even in the anodic peak current (Ip) which indicates the precipitation of Mo$_{6}$C was also observed. And it was assured that special electrolytic cell assembled in this research can be used for the detection of Mo$_{6}$C precipitation in the field.eld.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.300-312
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• 1993

The material deterioration of service-exposed boiler tube steels in fossil power plant was evaluated by using the electrochemical technique namely, modified electrochemical potentiokinetic reactivation(EPR). It was focused that the passivation of Mo$_{6}$C carbide which governs the mechanical properties of Mo alloyed steels did not occur even in the passivity region of steel in sodium molybdate solution and the reactivation peak current (Ip) observed as the result of non-passivation indicating the precipitation of Mo$_{6}$C carbides. To obtain the optimal test conditions for the field test by using the specially designed electrochemical cell, the effects of scan rate, the surface roughness and the pH of electrolyte on Ip value were also investigated. Furthermore, the change of mechanical properties occurred during the long time exposure at high temperature was evlauated quantitatively by small punch(SP) tests and micro hardness test taking account of the metallurgical changes. It is known that reactivation peak current (Ip) has a good relationship with Larson-Miller Parameter(LMP) which represents the information about material deterioration occurred at high temperature environment. In addition it was possible to estimate the ductile-brittle transition temperature (DBTT) by means of the SP test. The Sp test could be, therefore, suggested as a reliable test method for evaluating the material degradation of boiler tube steels. From the good correaltion between the SP DBTT and Ip values shown in this study, it was knows that the change of mechanical properties could be evaluated non-destructively by measurring only Ip values.ues.