STRESS CORROSION CRACKING

Stress corrosion cracking (SCC) is catastrophic cracking failure of a susceptible material in a particular environment. This phenomenon can produce cracking at stress levels well below a materials rated tensile strength. The crack or fracture will appear brittle, with no localized yielding, plastic deformation or elongation. Rather than a single crack, a whole network of fine, feathery, branched cracks will form. Severe general corrosion will not be found where SCC develops. If the rate were high, metal would be removed faster than a crack could penetrate the material. Thus, a crack would have no chance to begin and grow. Pitting is frequently seen and will often serve as a stress concentrator to initiate cracking. One or more cracks will grow from the pit, eventually leading to failure. SCC is caused by the simultaneous presence of a tensile stress, a specific corrosive environment and a specific material. STRESS LEVEL & HARDNESS: Tensile stresses can be caused by cyclic loads, applied tensile loads or residual stresses from the original forming operations (ie. Heat treatment, casting, welding, cold working or machining stresses). A threshold stress level exists below which SCC will not occur. For different materials, this threshold may vary anywhere from 10 to 100% of a material yield strength. For any given material there is a strong relationship between the tensile strength and the hardness of the material. Since measurement of material hardness is universally simpler, quicker and less costly, hardness has been adopted as the primary acceptability criterion for materials rather than tensile strength. The maximum hardness listed for a given alloy is the highest hardness at which it has demonstrated acceptable resistance to SCC either in the field or in laboratory tests. The immunity level is about Rockwell C22 for carbon steel, alloy steel and the 300 and 400 series stainless steels; C32 for 17.4ph DH1150; and C35 for Monel 400, K500, Inconel 600, 625.

STRESS CORROSION

CRACKING ENVIRONMENT

Alloy Aluminum base

Environment

< Chlorides < Sea water < Humid industrial atmospheres

(hydrogen embrittlement)

T E C H N I C A L B U L L E T I N

Copper base

< Ammonium ions < Amines < < < <

Hydrogen sulfide Atomic Hydrogen Chlorides Humid industrial atmospheres (hydrogen embrittlement)

High-Strength stainless and alloy steels

Low alloy steels

< Boiling, concentrated hydroxides (> 120NF) < Boiling concentrated nitrates (> 120NF) < Hot concentrated hydroxides < Hydrofluoric acid vapours < Hot chlorides (> 200NF) < Boiling, concentrated

Nickel base

1 ENVIRONMENT: A typical stress - cracking environment is an ageous solution containing certain ions. A minimum ion concentration is required to produce SCC. As the concentration 1 hydroxides increases, the environment becomes more severe, reducing the time to failure. Although the 2 < Hot acid chloride services (> minimum ionic concentration may not be present throughout the solution, SCC may still 160 NF) develop because ions can collect in crevices and pits, concentrating to very high levels. Concentrations of 10,100 or 1000 times the overall average can easily develop. For this reason < Hydrogen sulfide Stainless - 400 one must be conservative in selecting materials for SCC environments. Temperature is also < Chlorides series < Reactor cooling water a factor and in general SCC increases with increasing temperature. A minimum threshold < Hydrogen embrittlerment temperature exists for most systems, below which SCC is rare. The exception to this is hydrogen embrittlement which is most < Chlorides Titanium base severe at ambient temperatures. < Methyl alcohol (methanol) The table to the left outlines < Solid chloride above 550 NF Design & process controls used to minimize stress corrosion are: < Nitric and fuming nitric acid environments which are known to cause SCC in certain alloys. < Based on specific environment Material Selection < Based on hardness of MR0175 PREVENTION - Control the design and process to minimize stress corrosion as per the table on the right. Stress Relief Heat treat after all cold working or welding to
Stainless - 300 series

Score-TRICENTRIC SCC design for specific environment: The following sections outline general design guidelines for the Score-TRICENTRIC valve for application to each specific environment. SOUR SERVICE: Hydrocarbon streams are termed sour when they contain water as a liquid and H2S exceeding particular limits.

reduce residual stresses to acceptable levels Reduced Tensile Stress Reduced Temperature Distributions Reduce Stress Risers Induce Compressive Stresses Change Environment Reduce mechanical stresses to levels which prevent SCC Avoid uneven distribution which can cause local SCC. Design to avoid sharp corners and crevices which promote SCC by peening of surfaces

- Valves shown on data sheets as being NACE sour service shall be furnished with materials conforming to NACE standard MR-01-75 (Sulfide Stress Cracking Resistant Metallic Materials for Oilfield Equipment). This standard provides guidelines for the selection of materials that are resistant to failure in hydrogen sulfide - containing oil and gas production environments and has even been adopted as law in some states. Sulfide stress cracking (wet H2S cracking) is a special case of hydrogen embrittlement that occurs when H2S dissociates, in the presence of water, into hydrogen and sulfide ions. NACE MR0175 contains very explicitly, language that places the responsibility for determining the suitability of the materials of construction on the user while the carbon steel manufacturers are responsible for verifying that the low alloy steel materials supplied in the product meet the high alloy steel requirements set forth for those materials in NACE 13 chrome MR0175. General material corrosion resistence in 18 chrome duplex-22-25 Cr (140 ksi) sulfide environments is listed to the right in order of 22 Cr duplex (75-125 ksi) increasing resistence with increasing chloride content 25 Cr duplex (75-125 ksi) and temperature. super austenitic (6 molyNACE SOUR SERVICE 904, alloy G, G3) SM2SS0

< Lower temperature < Remove or reduce ion/elemental < Sulfide ions < Selenium < Phosphorusarsenic compounds for
hydrogen embrittlement concentrations (ie. C1, H2S)

Welding Practice Bake Components

Use low hydrogen welding rods to combat hydrogen embrittlement For hydrogen embrittlement prone environment, heat treatment at 200 to 400 C will eliminate hydrogen from castings and components. (Eg. Zn plating).

high moly alloy (alloy 625,

Score Energy Products Inc. 9821 - 41 Avenue Edmonton, Alberta Canada T6E 0A2

Phone: [780] 466-6782 Fax: [780] 465-6979 Email: technical@scorevalves.com

NACE MATERIALS - Score-TRICENTRIC high performance butterfly valve standard materials of construction fully conforms to NACE MR0175 with the exception of the F593 Gr316 disc fasteners. For NACE specified valves the disc fasteners are supplied in a material condition conforming to NACE MR0175 including hardness and are free of cold work (ie. rolled threads).

ALLOY 304 SST 316 SST

COMMENT to 140F, PREN 20 to 140F, PREN 27 to 140F

Nace Materials STANDARD CAST MATERIAL - A216 Gr WCB, any welding is post weld heat treated. - A351 Gr CF8M, solution annealed following any welding - 316SST, annealed and free of cold work

STANDARD WROUGHT MATERIAL BOLTING MATERIAL

CHLORIDE SERVICE MATERIALS - for NON-NACE Chloride stress corrosion TUBING MATERIAL - all exterior or interior tubing sour service valves no copper in contact with the process cracking is the most or copper bearing alloys shall shall be annealed 316 SST widely encountered form be used. with fittings conforming to of SCC. Stainless steels TAGGING - for NON-NACE NACE. sour service valves no special are covered with a tagging is required. protective oxide film. TAGGING - A separate tag is required for each valve in NACE The chloride ions service and shall be marked rupture the film at weak NACE MR0175" spots setting up a galvanic cell which produces accelerated attack at the sites, which when combined with tensile stresses produces cracking. The minimum stress level required for chloride SCC for 300 series stainless is extremely low and most commonly used fabrication techniques (welding, bending, rolling, etc.) will produce residual stress exceeding the minimum value. Annealing to relieve stresses (1000 to 1200 F) is ineffective due to reduction in corrosion resistence thru this sensitization temperature. Solution annealing at 1700 to 1900 F results in residual stresses upon cooling of differential section thicknesses and is therefore ineffective. Material Selection - is the responsibility of the user and selection should be based on the general guidelines to the right with resistence increasing from top to bottom. SEASON CRACKING - Ammonia and amine compounds will produce season cracking of all copper, brass and bronze alloys. The required stress and ion-concentration levels are low. Season cracking can occur at temperatures from ambient and up. Materials - The use of copper in systems containing any concentration of ammonia is not recommended. Alloying copper with nickel, such as cupro-nickel alloys or monel alloys produce immunity to season cracking. CAUSTIC EMBRITTLEMENT - Caustic embrittlement is generally encountered in boilers or steam systems where sodium or calcium scales form on heated surfaces. The susceptibility of a welded steel structure to SCC is a well defined function of sodium hydroxide concentration and temperature. Materials As welded steel, NaOH all concentrations to 120F As welded steel, low NaOH concentrations to 180 F Stress relieved steel, extends range another 30 to 70F 300 series SST, resistant at low NaOH concentrations to high temperatures Nickel 200 & Inconel 600, best resistence for caustics

- as per table at end of bulletin

- Valves shown on data sheets as being NON-NACE Sour Service are not required to have materials that meet the requirements of NACE MR0175. It should be noted that highly susceptible materials may fail in less severe H2S environments and that NACE MR0175 specifies that the user shall determine, but that NACE MR0175 need not apply in: - low pressure gas < 65 psia - low pressure oil and gas multi phase systems (<265 psia) - refineries and chemical plants

NON-NACE SOUR SERVICE

317 LMN Mn-N Alloys 3RE60 Duplex ALLOY 20 2205 Duplex 255 Duplex 22% Ni minimum Alloys 904 L Sea-Cure AL29-4-2 6 Moly Alloys Alloy 20 Mod. (UNSNO8320) Zeron 100 2 507 Duplex 254 SMO AL6XN 654 SMO 444 E-Brite 26-1 Incoloy 825 G-30 C276 Inconel 600, 625 C, 4, C-22, C-2000 Monel

PREN 23 PREN 26 resists CSCC

seldom experience CSCC

resists CSCC resists CSCC resists CSCC PREN 40, resists CSCC

PREN 41, resists CSCC PREN 43, resists CSCC PREN 45, resists CSCC PREN 46, resists CSCC PREN 56, resists CSCC resists CSCC resists CSCC resists CSCC

immune to CSCC immune to CSCC immune to CSCC

HYDROGEN EMBRITTLEMENT - Hydrogen embrittlement occurs when atomic hydrogen diffuses into the metal structure and interacts within the metal to form a brittle material. This brittle material then fails by brittle cracking due to the internal stresses created by the entrapped hydrogen molecules. Because sulphide stress corrosion cracking is a specialized form of hydrogen embrittlement all of the general guidelines for SSCC apply (see previous section of SSCC). Fastener selection for each stress corrosion cracking environment: This table serves as a general guideline only - materials must be selected on an application specific basis: ENVIRONMENT General corrosion resistence Chloride SCC Sulfide SCC Hydrogen SCC Season SCC Caustic Embrittlement Bulletin contents may change at any time without notice. X X X X X (class 1) X X X X (class 1) X X X B7 B7M B8 X B8M X X L7 MONEL X X X X X INCONEL X X X X X X

Score Energy Products Inc. 9821 - 41 Avenue Edmonton, Alberta Canada T6E 0A2

Phone: [780] 466-6782 Fax: [780] 465-6979 Email: technical@scorevalves.com