Abstract:
The stress corrosion cracking (SCC) behavior of cold worked alloy 690 MA in 360 ℃ water was investigated by direct current potential drop (DCPD) on-line monitoring. Analytical electron microscopy was used to characterize the cracking process for better understanding the dissolved oxygen (DO) and dissolved hydrogen (DH) effect. The crack growth rate (CGR) in hydrogenated water is about 2-4 times higher than that in water containing DO. Similar crack tips and no grain boundary oxidation were observed after CGR testing in both DO and DH water. A good correlation between the grain boundary (GB) cavity coverage and high CGRs was observed in cold worked alloy 690 MA when tested in hydrogenated water. DH may promote cavities formation ahead of the crack tip, and thus decrease the GB strength and enhance the CGR.