Application of local approach to the cleavage fracture behaviour of F82Hmod ferritic-martensitic structural steel

In the framework of the European Fusion Blanket Programme, the ductile-to-brittle transition behaviour of reduced activation ferritic-martensitic steels is investigated using methods based on local fracture criteria. The numerical analysis of experiments with notched tensile specimens of various shapes performed at selected temperature levels yield the basis for the transferability of predictions of fracture parameters to different conditions of geometry and temperature. A fractographic analysis of fracture surfaces is essential for the confirmation of the appropriate modelling and for the identification of competing fracture mechanisms. The present paper gives first results on the characterization of the Japanese F82Hmod steel in the brittle (low temperature) regime.