Caustic SCC of carbon steel

[bob330]

Hi All,


Is caustic SCC of carbon steel intergranular or transgranular. Also, with most SCC processes, increased metal hardness leads to increased cracking susceptibility. However, I read somewhere (trying to find link) that this is not the case with caustic SCC of CS and that softer steels and even decarburized steel is more susceptible in caustic. I remember reading that the reason for this may be that enhanced plasticity at the crack tip actually helpds the cracking process. Does anybody have any knowledge of this hardness factor for caustic SCC?

Thanks,
bob

 

[rustbuster]

Intergranular for carbon steels. Function of concentration, temperature and stress, typically require stress near the yield strength but have been reported lower. API 571 gives an excellent description.