Development of peening technique using recirculating shot accelerated by water jet

The present paper demonstrates the development of a peening technique using recirculating shot accelerated by a water jet that can be used as a risk free treatment in power and chemical plants. Although it is important to increase the reliability of structural materials used in large scale structures, such as power and chemical plants, it is hazardous to treat these structures by general shot peening (SP) techniques because of the risk of sparks and dust explosions. In the present study, an SP technique using a water jet to accelerate shot has been developed, and the conditions under which it is used have been optimised in terms of nozzle geometry, standoff distance and amount of shot. In order to demonstrate the effect of SP, austenitic stainless steel Japan Industries Standards SUS316L was peened and evaluated in terms of its residual stress, fatigue strength and resistance to stress corrosion cracking.