Stress corrosion cracking of some steels in various environments

Abstract Stress corrosion cracking of three steels, namely: AISI 1018, AISI 4340 and stainless steel 17 7 PH in various environments are studied. These include polluted seawater, natural seawater, drinking tap water, industrial and suburban atmospheres. Results show that even stainless steel is sensitive to stress corrosion cracking. It is found that pollutants greatly affect stress corrosion cracking. Tap water produced locally from desalting seawater and blended with brackish water is found to be extremely aggressive. For specimens exposed to air, the exposure period is found to be crucial to stress corrosion cracking factor. An attempt is made to explain causes of the aggressiveness of drinking tap water, polluted seawater and polluted atmosphere on stress corrosion cracking properties of the tested steels.