Chapter 3 Corrosion, wear, and degration of materials 3.1 Failure due to Corrosion Corrosion of metallic occurs in a number of forms which differ in appearance. Failure due to corrosion is a major safety and economic concern. Sevoral typos of ccotrosion are encountered in metallic materials, among those: general corrosion, zalvanic corrosion, crevice corrosion, pitting, intergranular, stress corrosion ete ‘This car be controlled using galvanic protection. corrosion inhibitors, materials selection, protective coating and observing some design rules. Corrosion is chemically induced damage to a material that results in dot oration of the materials and its properties. This may result in felure of the component. Several factors should be considered during a feilure analysis to determine the effect of corrosion in a failure. Corrosion may be defined as the unintended destructive chemical or electro ‘chemical reaction of a material with its environment. Metallic, polymeric, and ‘ceramic materials are susceptible to attack from different environments, and although the corrosion of metals is electrochemical in nature, the corrosion of other materials usually involves chemical reaction. Oxidation represents a direct chemical reaction between the material and oxygen. There are various mechanisms for building up an oxide layer om the materials surface. For some metals, such as pure aluminum, the oxide layer is strong and impervious and provices protection against further oxidation. For others, such as plaim-carbon steels, the oxide layer is weak and porous and is not protective, ‘The nature, composition, and uniformity of the environment and the at tacked surface can greatly influence the type, rate, and extent of attack. In addition, externally imposed changes and changes that occur as a result of cor jon themselves are known to influence the type and the rate of attack. Corrosion and oxidation frequently lead to failure of engineering com- rosion and oxid pponents or render them susceptible to failure by some other mechanisms. The rate and extent of corrosive attack that can be tolerated in a certain component ‘depend on the application. For example, in many structural applications, some ‘uniform corrosion or oxidation can be allowed, while in food-processing equip- 2%2ACHAPTER 3. CORROSION, WEAR, AND DEGRATION OF MATERIALS Figure 3.1: Bleetrochernical cell ‘ment, for instance, even a minute amount of metal dissolution is not tolerated. 3.1.1 Electrochemical principles of metallic corrosion In the case of metallic, where corrosion takes place by electrochemical attack, the comoding metal is the anode in a galvanic cell, and the cathode can be ‘another metal, a conducting nonmetal, or a oxide, as shown in Fig 3.1. The reaction can be waitten as M—M™ tne whore M stands for the metal atom which emits n electrons and becomes a positive ion. In oxygen-ftee liquids, such as stagnant waster or HCI, the cathode-reduction reaction results in the evolution of hydrogen, usually called the hydrogen elec. trode 2H 420° > He, In acrated water, oxygen is available and an oxygen electrode is formed: Oy + 20 + 4e" — 40H~ (This reaction entiches the electrolyte in OH ions that react with the metal fons, Mf", to form a solid product. For example, Fe?* combines with two OH” to forts Fe(OH), oF rust311, FAILURE DUE TO CORROSION 25 3.1.2 Types of metallic corrosion Corrosion of metallic materials may oceur in a number of forms, which differ in appearance. General or atmospheric corrosion of metals is probably the most, commonly encountered and the most significant, in terms of economic losses, form of corrosion. When 2 metal is exposed to the atmosphere, its surface is covered with a thin layer of condensed or adsorbed water, even at relative Jbumidity < 100%, and this layer can act as electrolyte, ‘The presence of industrial contaminants in the atmosphere increases the cor rosion rate. Examples are dust, sulfur dioxide, and ammonium sulfate. Sodium chloride is also an impurity, which is present in marine atmospheres, and it inereasos the corrosion rate General corrosion does not usually lead to sudden or unexpected failure, but ‘gradual reduction in thickness needs to be taken into account during the design stage. Galvanic corrosion When dissimilar metals are in electric contact in an electrolyte, the Jess noble metal becomes anode in the galvanic cell and is attacked to a greater extent than if it were exposed alone. ‘The more noble metal becomes the cathode and is attacked to a lesser extent than if it were exposed. alone, The severity of the galvanic corzosion depends on the separation of the ‘two metals in the galvanic series 3.1. In most cases, metals from one group ‘can be coupled with one another without causing a substantial increase in the ‘corrosion rate Another factor that affects the severity of galvanic corrosion is the relative ‘areas of the anodic metal to cathodic metal, Because the density of ‘carrent is higher with small anode, a steel rivet in a capper plate will be more severely corroded than a stee! plate containing a copper rivet as can be seen Fig. 3.2 Galvanic corrosion can also take place between two different areas of a struc tte, which is made of the same motal and immersed in the same electrolyte, if the contact arcas are at different temperatures. For a stoel structure in contact with dilute aerated chloride solution, the warmer area is anodic to the colder area, whereas for copper in aqueous salt solution, the warmer area is ‘cathodic to the colder area, Ife structure, which is made of the same material, is in contact with two different concentrations of an electrolyte, concentration - cell corrosion will take place, This type od attack is known to take place in buried metals as a result of their being in contact with soils that have different chemical composi- tions, especially with respect to the concentration of sodium chloride, sodium sulfate, and organic acids. Differences in water contents or degree of aeration can also be detrimental. Corrective action in such cases usually in- ‘volves coating of the buried metal in asphalt, enclosing in a concrete troug! adopting cathodic protection.