Effects of Aging Treatment on Intergranular Corrosion and Stress Corrosion Cracking Behavior of AA7003

In order to study the effects of aging treatment on the intergranular corrosion（IGC） and stress corrosion cracking（SCC） of 7003 aluminum alloy（AA7003）, the intergranular corrosion test, electrochemical test and slow strain rate test（SSRT）, combined with optical microscopy（OM） and scanning electron microscopy（SEM） as well as transmission electron microscopy（TEM） observations have been carried out. The IGC and electrochemical test results showed that the IGC resistance of AA7003 for peak aged（PA） temper is the lowest, with double peak aged（DPA） the moderate, and retrogression and re-aging（RRA） the highest among three tempers, which is attributed to the continuous feature of precipitation on grain boundary of PA temper and the interrupted feature of precipitation on grain boundary of DPA and RRA tempers, as well as the wide precipitation free zones（PFZ） of RRA temper. In addition, the SSRT results indicated that all three tempers AA7003 are susceptible to SCC in IGC solution, and the change tendency of SCC susceptibility（ISCC） of AA7003 for three tempers follows the order： ISCC（RRA）

Improvement of Intergranular Stress Corrosion Crack Susceptibility of Austenite Stainless Steel through Grain Boundary Engineering

Intergranular stress corrosion crack susceptibility of austenite stainless steel was evaluated through threepoint bending test conducted in high temperature water. The experimental results showed that the frequent and efficient introduction of low energy coincidence site lattice boundaries through grain boundary engineering resulted in an apparent improvement of the intergranular stress corrosion crack resistance of austenite stainless steel.

Through-thickness inhomogeneity of localized corrosion in 7050-T7451 Al alloy thick plate

The through-thickness corrosion inhomogeneity of 7050-T7451 Al alloy thick plate was studied using immersion tests, potentiodynamic polarization, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy(EIS), slow strain rate testing(SSRT) technique combined with optical microscopy(OM), scanning electron microscopy(SEM) and transmission electron microscopy(TEM). The results show that the through-thickness corrosion resistance is ranked in the order of T/2>surface>T/4. And the 75 mm-thick 7050 alloy plate presents better corrosion resistance than the 35 mm-thick plate. The results are discussed in terms of the combined effect of recrystallization and cooling rate in quenching. Alloy with lower volume fraction of recrystallization and smaller grain aspect ratio displays better corrosion resistance. The lower corrosion resistance caused by the slower cooling rate results from the higher coverage rate of grain boundary precipitates and larger width of precipitate free zone.

Improving Intergranular Stress Corrosion Cracking Resistance in a Fe–18Cr–17Mn–2Mo–0.85N Austenitic Stainless Steel Through Grain Boundary Character Distribution Optimization

The grain boundary character distribution(GBCD) optimization and its effect on the intergranular stress corrosion cracking(IGSCC) resistance in a cold-rolled and subsequently annealed Fe-18 Cr-17 Mn-2 Mo-0.85 N high-nitrogen nickel-free austenitic stainless steel were systematically explored.The results show that stacking faults and planar slip bands appearing at the right amount of deformation(lower than 10%) are beneficial cold-rolled microstructures to the GBCD optimization.The proportion of special boundaries gradually increases in the subsequent stages of recrystallization and grain growth,accompanying with the growth of twin-related domain in the experimental steel.In this way,the fraction of low ∑ coincidence site lattice(CSL) boundaries can reach as high as 82.85% for the specimen cold-rolled by 5% and then annealed at 1423 K for 72 h.After GBCD optimization,low ∑ CSL boundaries and the special triple junctions(J2,J3) of high proportion can greatly hinder the nitride precipitation along grain boundaries and enhance the capability for intergranular crack arrest,thus improving the IGSCC resistance of the experimental steel.

Effect of Shot Peening and Plasma Electrolytic Oxidation on the Intergranular Corrosion Behavior of 7A85 Aluminum Alloy

The effects of shot peening（SP） and plasma electrolytic oxidation（PEO） on the intergranular corrosion behavior of the novel high strength aluminum alloy 7A85（AA 7A85） were investigated by electrochemical polarization and electrochemical impedance tests.The intergranular corrosion mechanism of SP,PEO and PEO combined with sealingtreated AA 7A85 was studied by the metallographic analysis,residual stress testing,X-ray diffractometer analysis and scanning electron microscopy.The results show that AA 7A85-T7452 is very sensitive to intergranular corrosion.SP would significantly improve its intergranular corrosion resistance.This is attributed to the combination action of residual compressive stress and grain refinement.PEO would reduce the largest corrosion depth by 41.6%.Moreover,PEO without sealing did not eliminate the intergranular corrosion due to the existence of the micropores and microcracks in the oxide coating.However,PEO combined with the SiO2sol–gel sealing treatment could effectively protect the AA 7A85-T7452 from intergranular corrosion because of the good corrosion resistance and barrier function of the sealed coating.

Unusual W-shaped Galvanic Cell Model of ISCC of α-brass in Neutral Mattsson's Solution

Intergranular stress corrosion cracking (ISCC) of α-brass in neutral Mattsson's solution was found to be controlled by an unusual 'W'-shaped galvanic cell whose cathode is the grain boundary oxide film (G.B.0. film) and surface film and the anode is fresh metal at the cracked tip on both sides of the G.B.0. film. Redox reactions involved in the cell have been proposed here. According to this mdel, initidtion of ISCC is caused by the rupturing of surface film along grain boundaries, thus forming a galvanic cell. Propagation of ISCC resulted from alternate advances of G.B.0. film and dissolution on both sides of G.B.0. film caused by the effect of electrochemical reaction. This work developed an effective approach to investigate the embrittlement process at the tip of the crack, by increasing the length of the embrittlement region through constant strain test and distinguishing the morphology and the nature of the corrosion products by optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEH).