Application Study of Time-Temperature Correlation Methods on Test Data of Metal Seals

Abstract Reliable experimental data and prediction models are required to evaluate the behavior of components and materials over long periods of time. One method is based on the time-temperature equivalence principle, according to which a state or material property occurs or can be achieved equivalently at different time-temperature combinations. Higher temperatures generally shorten the duration and vice versa. Based on this approach, the long-term behavior of metal seals, as used in storage containers for spent nuclear fuels and high-level radioactive waste, has been studied at BAM and other institutions around the world for several years. However, such tests are often not planned as a preliminary point regarding the basic conditions of time-temperature related models. Gaps are then sometimes identified during the evaluation, for example because certain temperature values are missing, or the measurement intervals were not selected appropriately. This study evaluates exemplarily the status of the test data of metal seals at the BAM regarding the applicability of existing time-temperature correlation methods and corresponding models. Based on the existing database, the aim is to show which method and model are more likely to be applicable and which additional tests might be necessary to obtain a more suitable database. The tests so far have provided important findings for the planning and adaptation of possible further tests and for suitable model developments. Identified gaps in the data basis led to further development of the methods. In the present work, a time-temperature correlation was determined based on a time-temperature parameter from GRAHAM and WALLES for a selected data range.