Method and apparatus for automated crack behavior prediction determination

• US 20010053965A1
• Filed: 12/27/2000
• Published: 12/20/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 06/14/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: General Electric Company
• Original Assignee: General Electric Company
• Inventors: Horn, Ronald Martin, Mui, Jenny Y., Ford, F. Peter, Andresen, Peter L.
• Granted Patent: US 7,031,779 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 703/2
• CPC Class Codes: G21C 17/022 for monitoring liquid coolants or moderators
• CPC Class Codes: G21C 17/0225 Chemical surface treatment, e.g. corrosion corrosion prevention in presence of water from scale removal or by modification of the properties of the liquid C02F5/00; inhibiting corrosion by adding corrosion inhibitors C23F11/00
• CPC Class Codes: Y02E 30/30 Nuclear fission reactors

Abstract

A method of predicting component crack behavior in a nuclear reactor provides access to a crack growth behavior model over a global network. A user inputs water chemistry and material characteristics of a particular nuclear reactor and can perform crack growth rate predictions by accessing the behavior model over the computer network. A crack growth prediction profile or crack growth based result is output over the network according to an analysis by the behavior model.

Claims

1. A method of predicting component crack behavior in a nuclear reactor, the method comprising:

(a) receiving input water chemistry characteristics over a global computer network;

(b) accessing a crack growth behavior model that predicts component crack behavior according to the input water chemistry characteristics; and

(c) outputting over the global computer network a crack growth prediction profile according to an analysis of the crack growth behavior model.

2. A method according to

claim 1

, wherein step (c) is practiced by generating a graphical representation of a crack growth rate according to the input water chemistry characteristics.

3. A method according to

claim 1

, wherein step (c) is practiced by outputting a real time crack growth prediction according to the input water chemistry characteristics.

4. A computer system for predicting component crack behavior in a nuclear reactor, the computer system comprising:

at least one user computer running a computer program that receives input water chemistry characteristics; and

a system server running a server program, the at least one user computer and the system server being interconnected by a computer network, the system server storing a crack growth behavior model that predicts component crack behavior according to the input water chemistry characteristics, and the system server outputting over the computer network a crack growth prediction profile according to an analysis of the crack growth behavior model.

5. A computer program embodied on a computer readable medium for predicting component crack behavior in a boiling water nuclear reactor, the computer program comprising:

means for receiving input water chemistry characteristics over a global computer network;

means for accessing a crack growth behavior model that predicts component crack behavior according to the input water chemistry characteristics; and

means for outputting over the global computer network a crack growth prediction profile or crack growth based result according to an analysis of the crack growth behavior model.