Stress Corrosion Cracking of Austenitic Cast Iron in Chloride-Containing Waters

Austenitic cast iron has been used for many years for pump cases, column pipes, and valves in seawater systems, particularly in the Middle East. Since the 1970s, failures have occurred by stress corrosion cracking, and there have been a number of research efforts to understand the problem and suggest means of preventing it. Cracking failures have continued and further research has been undertaken to try and understand the problem more thoroughly. This paper reviews the data from the early research, and presents the results of previously unpublished work, and its implications for the further use of austenitic cast iron in seawater and alternative alloys.