Abstract:

The proportion of low Σ (Σ≤29) coincidence site lattice (CSL) grain boundaries was increased to 75% by 5% cold rolling and subsequent annealing at 1 100 ℃ for 5 min. Stress corrosion cracking (SCC) susceptibility of 304 austenite stainless steel was evaluated through C-ring specimen tests conducted in acidified boiling 25% NaCl solution. The experimental results show that high proportion of low ΣCSL grain boundaries obtained by grain boundary engineering results in obvious improvement of the stress corrosion cracking resistance of 304 stainless steel in chloride solution.

Key words: grain boundary character distribution; grain boundary engineering; stress corrosion cracking; intergranular corrosion; 304 stainless steel