Stress Corrosion Cracking Behavior of X60 Pipe Steel in Soil Environment

ABSTRACTStress corrosion cracking (SCC) susceptibility of API X60 pipeline steel in a soil solution by slow strain rate tests (SSRT), and surface fracture analysis was investigated. The SSRT were performed at strain rate of 25.4 × 10-6 mm/sec in a glass autoclave containing the soil solution called NS4 with pH of 3 and 10 at room temperature and 50°C. Both anodic and cathodic polarization potentials of 200 mV referred to Ecorr was applied. The results of ratio reduction area (RRA), time to failure ratio (TFR) and elongation plastic ratio (EPR) indicate that X60 pipeline steel was susceptible to SCC at pH 3 and cathodic polarization of -200 mV at room temperature and 50°C. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observations of these specimens showed a brittle type of fracture with transgranular appearance. The SCC process and mechanism of X60 steel into NS4 solution was hydrogen based mechanism. With the different applied potentials the dominance of SCC process changes. At low pH the temperature effect on SCC susceptibility is more noticeable at 20°C. However at high pH this effects changes, being the steel more susceptible to SCC at 50°C.