Mechanisms and Kinetics of Environmentally Assisted Cracking: Current Status, Issues, and Suggestions for Further Work

Mechanisms and kinetics of metal-induced embrittlement, hydrogen-embrittlement, and stress-corrosion cracking are discussed, and long-standing controversies are addressed by reviewing critical observations. Recommendations are also made regarding further work (including repetition of previous work using more advanced measurement and characterisation techniques) that should be carried out in order to resolve some of the contentious issues. The evidence to date suggests that adsorption-based mechanisms, involving weakening of substrate interatomic bonds so that dislocation emission or decohesion is facilitated, accounts for embrittlement in many systems. Embrittling adsorbed species include some metal atoms, hydrogen, and complex ions produced by de-alloying. Other viable mechanisms of embrittlement include those based on (1) dissolution of anodic grain-boundary regions, and (2) decohesion at grain boundaries owing to segregated hydrogen and impurities. The hydrogen-enhanced localised-plasticity mechanism, based on solute hydrogen facilitating dislocation activity in the plastic zone ahead of cracks, makes a contribution in some cases, but is relatively unimportant compared with these other mechanisms for most fracture modes. The film-induced cleavage mechanism, proposed especially for stress-corrosion cracking in systems involving de-alloying at crack tips, is questionable on numerous grounds, and is probably not viable. Rate-controlling processes for environmentally assisted cracking are not well established, except for solid-metal induced embrittlement where surface self-diffusion of embrittling atoms to crack tips controls cracking kinetics. In some systems, adsorption kinetics are probably rate-controlling for liquid-metal embrittlement, hydrogen-environment embrittlement, and stress-corrosion cracking. In other cases, rate-controlling processes could include the rate of anodic or cathodic reactions at and behind crack tips (responsible for producing embrittling species such as hydrogen) and rates of hydrogen diffusion ahead of cracks.