Information Notice No. 86-25, Supplement 1: Traceability and Material Control of Material and Equipment, Particularly Fasteners

                                                     SSINS No: 6835       
                                                     IN 86-25, Supplement 1 

                                UNITED STATES
                        NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
                    OFFICE OF INSPECTION AND ENFORCEMENT
                           WASHINGTON, DC 20555

                              October 15, 1986

Information Notice No. NO 86-25, SUPPLEMENT 1:    TRACEABILITY AND MATERIAL 
                                                  CONTROL OF MATERIAL AND 
                                                  EQUIPMENT, PARTICULARLY 
                                                  FASTENERS 

Addressees: 

All nuclear reactor facilities holding an operating license or construction 
permit 

Purpose: 

This notice is to supplement IN 86-25 with information provided by the 
Industrial Fastener Institute (IFI) concerning an example of improperly 
marked fasteners It is expected that the recipients will review the 
information for applicability to their facilities and consider actions, if 
appropriate, to preclude similar problems from occurring at their 
facilities However, suggestions contained in this notice do not constitute 
NRC requirements; therefore, no specific action or written response is 
required 

Discussion: 

The IFI issued a news release on May 2, 1986 expressing its concerns about 
intentionally mismarked SAE J429K grade 8 bolts According to IFI, these 
falsely marked bolts (grade 82 for grade 8) could undergo stress relaxation
when subjected to temperatures above 500F, and such relaxation could 
result in equipment failure and injury 

The IFI news release states that 75% of the foreign imported bolts (mainly 
from the Far East) have incorrect "headmarkings," indicating that they are 
SAE J429K grade 8 rather than grade 82 Grade 8 is a fine grain, medium 
carbon alloy steel (quenched and tempered), and grade 82 is a low carbon 
quenched and tempered martensite steel The mechanical properties of both 
grades are essentially identical For both grades, the tensile and yield 
strengths are 150 ksi and 120 ksi, respectively However, the two grades of 
bolts are heat treated differently Grade 8 bolts are quenched in oil and 
tempered at 800F while grade 82 bolts are quenched in water or oil and
tempered at 650F Consequently, using an 82-grade bolt in lieu of an 
8-grade bolt at temperatures near 650F could result in stress 
relaxation of the grade 82 bolt resulting from a change in the original 
tempered microstructure Although SAE grade 8 and 82 bolts are not commonly 
used for high temperature safety-related applications in nuclear power 
plants, this situation provides an example of the type of problem which can 
result from anything less than a rigorous approach to the 

8610090098 


                                                     IN 86-25, Supplement 1 
                                                     October 15, 1986 
                                                     Page 2 of 2 

procurement of any safety-related component Substitutions of this type 
could be detected by an effective receipt inspection program if the receipt 
inspections went beyond visual inspection requirements and included, on a 
sample basis, chemical analyses, nondestructive testing such as eddy current
or conductivity testing, or destructive testing such as metallographic 
analyses 

No specific action or written response to this notice is required If you 
have any questions regarding this matter, contact the Regional Administrator
of the appropriate regional office or this office 



                                   Edward L Jordan Director 
                                   Division of Emergency Preparedness 
                                     and Engineering Response 
                                   Office of Inspection and Enforcement 

Technical Contact:  J C Harper, IE
                    (301) 492-7568

Attachment: List of Recently Issued IE Information Notices

 

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