• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.423-428
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• 2016

The last stage blades of a low pressure (LP) turbine get frequently fractured because of stress corrosion cracking. This is because they operate in a severe corrosive environment that is caused by the impurities dissolved in condensed steam and high stress due to high speed rotation. To improve the reliability of the blades under severe conditions, 12% Cr martensitic stainless steel, having excellent corrosion resistance and higher strength, is widely used as the blade material. This paper shows the result of root cause analysis on a blade which got fractured suddenly during normal operation. Testing of mechanical properties and microstructure examination were performed on the fractured blade and on a blade in sound condition. The results of testing of mechanical properties of the fractured blade showed that the hardness were higher but impact energy were lower, and were not meeting the criteria as per the material certificate specification. This result showed that the fractured blade became embrittled. The branch-type crack was found to have propagated through the grain boundary and components of chloride and sulfur were detected on the fractured surface. Based on these results, the root cause of fracture was confirmed to be stress corrosion cracking.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.12 no.6
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• pp.436-441
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• 2002

Effect of Sn addition on the stress corrosion cracking(SCC) resistance of the Al-Cu-Mn cast alley was investigated by C-ring teat and electrical conductivity measurement, The electrical conductivity and SCC resistance increased by Sn addition. The alley containing 0,10%Sn showed maximum electrical conductivity and the best SCC resistance. At the same composition, the electrical conductivity and SCC resistance increased from peak aged condition to ever aged condition. The PFZ and coarse precipitates along the grain boundary were observed from TEM micrographs. The fracture mode of the alloy was confirmed as intergranular type and showed brittle fracture surface. The SCC mechanism of the alloy was concluded as the anodic dissolution model, The maximum hardness was increased from 130Hv in the Sn-free alloy to 156Hv in the 0.10%Sn added alloy.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.266-271
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• 2001

Effect of Cd addition on the stress corrosion cracking(SCC) resistance of Al-Cu-Mn cast alloy was investigated by C-ring test and electrical conductivity measurement. With increasing Cd contents, the electrical conductivity and the SCC resistance were increased. The PFZ and coarse precipitates along the grain boundary were observed from TEM micrographs. The fracture made of the alloys was confirmed as intergranular type and showed brittle fracture surface. As a result, it was concluded that the SCC mechanism of these alloys is the anodic dissolution model. The maximum hardness was increased from 127Hv in the Cd-free alloy to 138∼145Hv in the Cd addition alloys.

• Proceedings of the Materials Research Society of Korea Conference
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• 2010.05a
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• pp.6.2-6.2
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• 2010

Stainless steel is widely known to have superior corrosion properties. However, in some harsh conditions it still suffers various kinds of corrosions such as galvanic corrosion, pitting corrosion, intergranular corrosion, chloride stress corrosion cracking, and etc. For the corrosion protection of stainless steel, the ceramic coatings such as protective silica film can be used. The sol-gel coating technique for the silica film has been extensively studied especially because of the cost effectiveness. It has been proved that silica can improve the oxidation and the acidic corrosion resistance of metal surface in a wide range of temperatures due to its high heat and chemical resistance. However, in the sol-gel coating process there used to engage a heat treatment at an elevated temperature like $500^{\circ}C{\sim}600^{\circ}C$ where cracks in the silica film would be formed because of the thermal expansion mismatch with the metal. The cracks and pores of the film would deteriorate the corrosion resistance. When the heat treatment temperature is reduced while keeping the adhesion and the density of the film, it could possibly give the enhanced corrosion resistance. In this respect, inorganic protective silica film was tried on the surface of stainless steel using a sol-gel chemical route where silica nanoparticles, tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) and methyltriethoxysilane (MTES) were used. Silica nanoparticles with different sizes were mixed and then the film was deposited on the stainless steel substrate. It was intended by mixing the small and the large particles at the same time a sufficient consolidation of the film is possible because of the high surface activity of the small nanoparticles and a modest silica film is obtained with a low temperature heat treatment at as low as $200^{\circ}C$. The prepared film showed enhanced adhesion when compared with a silica film without nanoparticle addition. The films also showed improved protect ability against corrosion.

• Proceedings of the Korean Nuclear Society Conference
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• 1998.05b
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• pp.66-71
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• 1998

A study of treatment effects on laser surface melted Ni-base alloy 600, especially on precipitation behavior ad chemical composition changes on the grain boundary were conducted with microscopic equipments. Long-term aging treatment at 40$0^{\circ}C$ caused no considerable effects on the grain boundary properties. Cr-rich M$_2$$_3$C$_{6}$ and Cr$_{7}$C$_3$ carbides were precipitated and the resultant Cr depletion below 12 wt pct on some high angle grain boundaries was occurred by heat treatment at $600^{\circ}C$ for 24 hours. These results can imply that the resistance of intergranular stress corrosion cracking of heat treated alloy 600 might not be changed considerably in comparion with the as-LSM one.e.e.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.21-38
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• 2009

The use of multi scale modeling concepts and simulation techniques to study the destabilization of an ultrathin layer of oxide interface between a metal substrate and the surrounding environment is considered. Of particular interest are chemo-mechanical behavior of this interface in the context of a molecular-level description of stress corrosion cracking. Motivated by our previous molecular dynamics simulations of unit processes in materials strength and toughness, we examine the challenges of dealing with chemical reactivity on an equal footing with mechanical deformation, (a) understanding electron transfer processes using first-principles methods, (b) modeling cation transport and associated charged defect migration kinetics, and (c) simulation of pit nucleation and intergranular deformation to initiate the breakdown of the oxide interlayer. These problems illustrate a level of multi-scale complexity that would be practically impossible to attack by other means; they also point to a perspective framework that could guide future research in the broad computational science community.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Nondestructive Testing
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.174-183
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• 1996

Acoustic emission(AE) response during stress corrosion cracking(SCC) of Inconel 600 alloy has been monitored to study the AE detectability of crack generation and growth by comparing the crack behavior with AE parameters processed, and to evaluate the applicability as a nondestructive evaluation(AE) by measuring the minimum crack size detectable with AE. Variously heat-treated specimens were tensioned by constant extension rate test(CERT) in various extension rate to give rise to the different SCC behavior of specimens. The AE amplitude level generated from intergranular stress-corrosion cracking(IGSCC) is higher than those from ductile fracture and mechanical deformation, which means the AE amplitude can be a significant parameter for distinguishing the An source. AE can also provide the effective means to identify the transition from the small crack initiation and formation of dominant cracks to the dominant crack growth. Minimum crack size detectable with AE is supposed to be approximately 200 to $400{\mu}m$ in length and below $100{\mu}m$ in depth. The test results show that AE technique has a capability for detecting the early stage of IGSCC growth and the potential for practical application as a NDE.

• Journal of Korea Foundry Society
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• v.38 no.2
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• pp.48-54
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• 2018

To improve the durability of the turbocharger, it is important to suppress cracking of the turbine housing; therefore, we investigated the initiation and growth of these cracks. First, we initiated a crack in the turbine housing using endurance experiments. After the endurance test, cracks mainly occurred in the valve seat, the nozzle area, and the scroll part of the turbine housing. The results of a fracture analysis of the cracks showed that cracks in the valve seat were initiated by fatigue fracture. This seems to be caused by the accumulation of mechanical and thermal stresses due to vibration of the turbine wheel and high-temperature exhaust gas. Also, cracks in nozzle and scroll area were initiated by intergranular corrosion due to the exhaust gas. Thus, although there are differences in the cause of initiation according to the site, a concentric waveform was observed in all fracture planes. This phenomenon indicates that cracks gradually grow due to repeated stress changes, and the main causes are the temperature difference of the exhaust gas and the vibration caused by the turbine shaft.

• Corrosion Science and Technology
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.466-475
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• 2022

Surface oxides and intergranular (IG) oxidation phenomena in Alloy 600 depending on hydrogen concentration were characterized to obtain clear insight into the primary water stress corrosion cracking (PWSCC) behavior upon exposure to pressurized water reactor primary water. When hydrogen concentration was between 5 and 30 cm³ H₂/kg H₂O, NiFe₂O₄ and NiO type oxides were found on the surface. NiO type oxides were found inside the oxidized grain boundary when hydrogen concentration was 5 cm³ H₂/kg H₂O. However, only NiFe₂O₄ spinel on the surface and Ni enrichment were observed when hydrogen concentration was 30 cm³ H₂/kg H₂O. These results indicate that the oxidation/reduction reaction of Ni in Alloy 600 depending on hydrogen concentration can considerably affect surface oxidation behavior. It appears that the formation of NiO type oxides in a Ni oxidation state and Ni enrichment in a Ni reduction (or metallic) state are common in primary water. It is believed that the above different oxidation/reduction reactions of Ni in Alloy 600 depending on hydrogen concentration can also significantly affect the resistance to PWSCC of Alloy 600.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Nondestructive Testing
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.38-44
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• 2003

Performance demonstration with real flawed specimens has been strongly required for nondestructive evaluation of safety class components in nuclear power plant. Mechanical or thermal fatigue crack and intergranular stress corrosion cracking could be occured in the in-service nuclear power plant and mechanical fatigue crack was selected to study in this paper. Specimen was designed to produce mechanical fatigue flaw under tensile stress. The number of cycles and the level of stress were controlled to obtain the desired flaw roughness. After the accurate physical measurement of the flaw size and location, fracture surface was seal-welded in place to ensure the designed location and site. The remaining weld groove was then filled by using gas-tungsten are welding(GTAW) and flux-cored arc welding(FCAW). Results of radio graphic and ultrasonic testing showed that fatigue cracks were consistent with the designed size and location in the final specimens.