METHOD OF RESTORING PHYSICO-MECHANICAL PROPERTIES OF METAL OF REACTOR CASINGS Russian patent published in 1997 - IPC

FIELD: metal working. SUBSTANCE: invention relates to thermally treating high-strength or embrittled (aged) metals and can, in particular, find use in power engineering when restoring physico- mechanical properties of embrittled metals of casings of nuclear power station reactors. In addition, invention can also be used in physics, mechanics, and metallurgy when studying the problem of embrittling and restoration of metals. Method consists in heating metal at a temperature as high as 0.3-0.4 metal-fusion temperature and simultaneously creating conditions for diffusion of impurity elements with special attention to their directed motion. The latter is achieved when using thermoradiation heaters and cooling with air temperature field gradients displacing across the metal bulk. As a result undesirable local concentrations of impurity elements in metal bulk disappear and their average concentration in metal bulk is led to permissible values. Temperature field gradients are used to create compression zones in metal bulk, through which current is passed. EFFECT: enhanced efficiency of restoring physico-mechanical properties of metal.