Development of Test Specimens for Evaluating SCC Behavior

of Marine Aluminum Alloys and Assessment of the Severity

of Various Marine Exposure Conditions
Francine Bovard
Alcoa Technical Center
100 Technical Drive
Alcoa Center, PA, 15069

Jerry Curran
ASRC Aerospace
NASA CorrosionTechnology Laboratory
Kennedy Space Center, Florida, 32899

Christine Henon
Alcan Centre de Recherche de Voreppe
BP27, Parc Economique Centr Alp
F-38341, Voreppe, France

Jim Towers
Kvichak Marine Industries, Inc.
496 NW Bowdoin Place
Seattle Washington, 98107

Rebecca Wyss
Alcoa Technical Center
100 Technical Drive
Alcoa Center, PA, 15069

Jacob Padrul
Alcan GATI
9399 West Higgins Rd, Suite 820
Rosemont, IL 60018

Catherine Wong, Ph D
NAVSEA
1333 Isaac Hull Avenue SE
Washington, DC 20376

ABSTRACT

An evaluation of the relevance of the mass loss in ASTM G671 to the in-service stress corrosion
cracking (SCC) performance of high magnesium aluminum alloys is needed to validate the mass loss
requirements in ASTM B928/B928M.2 However, uniaxial SCC testing of thin gauge aluminum alloys in
orientations other than short transverse (ST) cannot reliably predict SCC performance for in-service
applications with an ST stress component.3 The objectives of this study were to identify an SCC test
specimen and evaluate various exposure conditions. The suitability of U-Bend specimens (per ASTM
G30)4 to study stress corrosion cracking was established using 5083-H321 material that was thermally
treated to intentionally create a sensitized condition. The testing, which was conducted at NASA
Kennedy Space Center Beach Corrosion Test Site (BCTS), demonstrates the relative severity of
seacoast atmosphere, full seawater immersion, seawater spray zone, and tidal exposures. Results of
this study will be used to select the environmental conditions for additional testing of 5xxx materials with

varying degrees of intentional sensitization to validate the mass loss requirements specified in ASTM
B928/B928M.
Key words: 5083-H321, ASTM B928/B928M, intergranular corrosion, stress corrosion cracking,
seacoast atmosphere, full immersion, spray, seawater, tidal, sensitization, U-bend, pre-form.

INTRODUCTION
Although 5xxx series wrought aluminum alloys generally exhibit excellent corrosion resistance,
exposure to moderately elevated temperature can cause sensitization due to precipitation of the phase (Mg2Al3) on the grain boundaries. The susceptibility to intergranular forms of corrosion including
intergranular stress corrosion cracking (IGSCC) increases with increased continuity of the grain
boundary precipitation.3,5,6
Cracking incidences in service environments and in laboratory tests have demonstrated that the loading
mode is also important in the SCC performance of these materials. Previous testing7 has
demonstrated that severely sensitized 5xxx materials exposed while stressed to 75% of the tensile yield
strength in longitudinal (L) or long transverse (LT) orientation did not fail even after exposure for up to
one year in the 3.5% NaCl alternate immersion environment. The same severely sensitized materials
failed rapidly when stressed in the ST orientation at stress levels as low as 25% of the tensile yield
strength. Because of the particularly strong dependence of SCC susceptibility on the stress orientation,
it is clear that uniaxial SCC testing of thin gauge aluminum alloys in orientations other than short
transverse (ST) cannot reliably predict SCC performance for in-service applications with an ST stress
component.3
The ASTM B928/B928M material specification for marine sheet and plate alloys has lot acceptance
requirements that invoke the use of nitric acid mass loss testing (per ASTM G67) to verify that the asproduced material is resistant to intergranular forms of corrosion. Prior to the publication of ASTM
B928/B928M in 2004, testing per ASTM G67 was not a requirement for these materials. The ASTM
G67 test method provides guidelines regarding interpretation of the mass loss data, which were
adopted in ASTM B928/B928M. An evaluation of the relevance of the mass loss in ASTM G67 to the
in-service performance of high magnesium aluminum alloys is still needed to validate the mass loss
requirements in ASTM B928/B928M.
Testing of sensitized material was conducted at NASA Kennedy Space Center Beach Corrosion Test
Site (BCTS), to determine the relative severity of seacoast atmosphere, full seawater immersion,
seawater spray zone, and tidal exposures. Results of this study will be used to select the
environmental conditions for additional testing of 5xxx materials with varying degrees of intentional
sensitization to validate the mass loss requirements specified in ASTM B928/B928M.

EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE
The material used for this study was 0.19 (4.8mm) thick 5083-H321 sheet. Pieces of the 5083-H321
were given thermal treatments of 28 days at 120C (248F), 6 days at 150C (302F), or 6 days at
175C (347F) to intentionally sensitize the material. Mass losses for the materials were measured per
ASTM G67.
Longitudinal (L) and long transverse (LT) oriented U-bend and pre-form specimens were prepared per
ASTM G30. The appearance of the U-bend and pre-form specimens is shown in Figure 1 and the
dimensions of the specimens are provided in Table 1.
Laboratory SCC testing of both types of

specimens was conducted on triplicate L and LT specimens of each thermal exposure condition by
alternate immersion per ASTM G44 in synthetic seawater (ASTM D1141).8
The material thermally treated 28 days at 120C was used to prepare LT oriented U-bend specimens for
testing in marine environments at the NASA Kennedy Space Centers Beach Corrosion Test Site. Five
replicate specimens were tested in each four different exposure conditions: seacoast atmosphere, full
seawater immersion seawater spray zone, and tidal exposures. Images of the U-bend specimens in the
various testing environments are shown in Figure 2. Specimens were inspected weekly for the first
month and bi-weekly for months 2-6.

Table 1. Dimensions in inches of U-bend and pre-form

specimens as defined in Figure 2 of ASTM G30
SPECIMEN
Ubend
Preform

L
12
12

M
11
11

W
0.8
0.8

T
0.19
0.19

D
0.375
0.375

X
3.5
3.5

Y
3.88
4.25

R
1.75
1.75

R/T
9.21
9.21

D (hole diameter centered at W/2)

RESULTS
M
W

X
Y= 4.25"

Y=3.88"

Figure 1: Schematic illustration of U-bend and pre-form specimens with dimension IDs.

The environmental conditions for the exposures at NASAs Beach Corrosion Test Site were as follows:
1. Seacoast Atmosphere (Beach front) The U-bend specimens were exposed to a natural
seacoast environment. The specimens were fixed to racks that are oriented toward the Atlantic
Ocean. The racks were attached to stands that were positioned approximately 150 feet from the
high tide line, and remained in that location throughout the duration of exposure.
2. Seawater spray/simulated splash (Splash zone) - This procedure exposed the U- bend
specimens to the effects of a seawater spray/splash environment. The seawater spray/splash
test utilizes a 1 hour cycle that includes a 10 minute period of exposure to seawater that is
sprayed onto the surface of the specimens, followed by a 50 minute drying period. A fresh
supply of natural seawater drawn from the base of the Atlantic Ocean is used for all testing.
This cycle is repeated 24 hours a day for the duration of exposure, except for brief durations
that were required to evaluate and photo-document the specimens. The alternating duration of
exposure to seawater spray and drying is similar to the ASTM G44 laboratory testing.
3. Full Immersion Exposure This experimental protocol mimics the effects for a material that
remains immersed in seawater for extended periods of time. These conditions were met by fully
immersing the U-bend specimens in a constantly replenished supply of natural seawater. The
specimens remained immersed in the seawater for the duration of exposure, except for brief
periods to evaluate and photo-document the specimens. These specimens are the bottom row
of specimens in the photo marked Full Immersion/Tidal in Figure 2.
4. Tidal Exposure - Tidal conditions occur when a material is exposed to alternating periods of
immersion and drying. These conditions were met by immersing the U-bend specimens in a
constantly replenished supply of natural seawater for 6 hours, followed by an additional 6 hours
when the specimens are allowed to dry. The 6 hour cycles were repeated throughout the six
month duration of exposure. These specimens are the top row of specimens in the photo
marked Full Immersion/Tidal in Figure 2.

RESULTS
Mass Loss and Laboratory SCC Testing
The results of the mass loss testing and the results of the laboratory SCC testing are summarized in
Table 2. With no thermal treatment the 5083-H321 had a low mass loss of only 3 mg/cm2 and did not
fail in over a year of exposure in the laboratory testing. All of the thermally treated specimens had mass
losses of 47-50mg/cm2. Thermally treated (i.e. sensitized) specimens with LT orientation all failed (i.e.
cracking was observed) in 14 days or less. In the L orientation 8 of the 18 sensitized specimens failed
but the other 10 did not fail in more than a year of the alternate immersion exposure.
Testing in Marine Environments
The results of the SCC testing in various seawater environmental conditions at NASA Kennedy Space
Center Beach Corrosion Test Site are summarized in Table 3. The tidal and splash/spray
environments were the most severe conditions with all 5 replicates failing within the first week of the
exposures. In the seacoast atmosphere exposures there were no failures at the 2 week inspection but
all 5 specimens had failed by the 3 week inspection. The full immersion exposure results were mixed
with 2 failures occurring between weeks 1 and 2, and 1 specimen failing between weeks 3 and 4. The
other two full immersion specimens did not fail during the 6 month exposure.

Figure 2: Images of U-bend Specimens in test at NASA Kennedy Space Center

Table 2. Mass loss and laboratory SCC test results.

U-bends
Pre-forms

Temp.
(C)

Time
(days)

ASTM G67
Mass loss
(mg/cm2)

F/N

Time to
Failure*
(days)

F/N

Time to
Failure*
(days)

Orientation

120
150

28
6

47
49

2/3
3/3

3,6,329
6,7,12

3/3
3/3

3,3,6
3,6,6

LT
LT

175

50

3/3

3,6,7

3/3

9,12,14

LT

120
150
175

28
6
6

47
49
50

3/3
1/3
0/3

5,5,5
31,T,T
T,T,T

3/3
0/3
1/3

5,5,47
T,T,T
7,T,T

L
L
L

None
None
3
0/3
T,T,T
0/3
T,T,T
LT
* Notes F/N = Failures/Number of specimens exposed; T indicates unfailed specimen was removed
from test after 9 months of exposure.

Table 3. NASA Kennedy Space Center SCC test results.

Test Environment
Seacoast Atmosphere
Splash/Spray
Full Immersion
Tidal

Orientation
LT
LT
LT
LT

F/N
5/5
5/5
3/5
5/5

Time to Failure
(weeks)
3,3,3,3,3
1,1,1,1,1
2,2,4,R,R
1,1,1,1,1

Notes: F/N = Failures/Number of specimens exposed; R = Removed from test

unfailed at 6 months exposure

CONCLUSIONS
The following conclusions and recommendations can be made from this study:
1. U-bend and/or pre-form specimens with LT orientation are useful for evaluating the stress
corrosion susceptibility of sensitized 5xxx sheet and thin plate materials that cannot be tested
with uniaxial loading in the ST orientation.
2. Tidal and splash/spray conditions have been shown to be more severe than seacoast
atmosphere or full immersion environment. In tidal and splash/spray environments, intentionally
sensitized specimen displayed cracks after shorter time durations than when exposed in
seacoast atmosphere or full immersion environments.
3. Tidal or splash/spray exposures would be suitable conditions for additional testing to validate
the ASTM G67 mass loss requirements

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We would like to thank the members of the ASTM B07 marine task group including Matthew Collette,
Hormoz Ghaziary, William Golumbskie, Robert Kain, Sajjad Kazi, Michael Niedzinski, Jack Snodgrass,
Tom Summerson, and Paul Wycliffe, for their support and guidance for this study. We would also like to
express our appreciation to the NASA Kennedy Space Center for the access to the Beach Corrosion
Test Site and the testing and documentation services that they provided.

REFERENCES
1. ASTM B928/B928M (latest version), Standard Specification for High Magnesium Aluminum-Alloy
Sheet and Plate for Marine Service and Similar Environments, (West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM).
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Corrosion of 5xxx Series Aluminum Alloys by Mass Loss after Exposure to Nitric Acid (West
Conshohocken, PA: ASTM).
3. F. Bovard, Sensitization and Environmental Cracking of 5XXX Aluminum Marine Sheet and Plate
Alloys, 198th Meeting of the Electrochemical Society, (Pennington, NJ: The Electrochemical Society,
October 3-8, 2004), pp. 232-43.
4. ASTM G30 (latest revision), Standard Practice for Making and Using U-bend Specimen StressCorrosion Test Specimens (West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM).
5. D.O. Sprowls and R.H. Brown, International Conf. on Fundamental Aspects of Stress Corrosion
Cracking, Ohio State Univ., Columbus, OH, (1967).
6. E.H. Dix, Jr., W.A. Andersen, M.B. Shumaker, CORROSION, Vol. 15, No. 2, pp. 55t-62t, February,
1959.
7. ASTM G44 (latest revision), Standard Practice for Exposure of Metals and Alloys by Alternate
Immersion in Neutral 3.5% Sodium Chloride Solution (West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM).
8. ASTM D1141 (latest revision), Standard Practice for the Preparation of Substitute Ocean Water
(West Conshohocken, PA: ASTM).