Processes Leading to Defects in Carbon Steel

Of course, carbon steel is not impervious to defects. They are usually the result of one or several of the following processes:

Segregation
In metallurgy, this is a process where one component of an alloy or solid solution separates in small regions within the solid or on the solid’s
surface. Segregation causes irregularities in the properties of the carbon steel, usually adverse to the
quality of the metal, and zones of reduced corrosion resistance in the immediate vicinity of segregation.

Porosity
This is defined as void spaces on or in the material. It appears often in castings. In weld metal, it’s usually the result of gas being trapped inside. In
castings, Often, porosity is the root cause of coating failures, which manifest themselves as surface
pitting, spotting, and corrosion.

Shrinkage (or Hot Cracking)

This is the formation ofcracks during the solidification of metal . The process is also known as hot shortness, hot
fissuring, solidification cracking, and liquation cracking. Hot cracking usually occurs when the available supply of liquid weld metal is insufficient to
fill the space available to solidifying metal.

Inclusions

oxides
These are particles, larger than ~0.5 µm, generally found in all steels, even the very purest. The most common inclusions in steel are
and sulphides, but also include nitrides and silicates, which are all non-metallic. Such inclusions can lead
to cause cracks such as sulphide-stress cracking (SSC) and fatigue failures.

Residual Stresses
Residual stresses are the stresses remaining in a solid material after their original cause is removed. These stresses, if uncontrolled, can lead to
the premature failure of critical components.

Embrittlement

loss of material ductility, making it brittle and prone to cracking. The absorption of hydrogen
This process is a
sulfide, leading to SSC, embrittles carbon steel. Similarly, CS absorbing hydrogen leads to hydrogen embrittlement,
which can cause the metal to fracture.

Fatigue

cyclic loading. If the loads are above a certain

Progressive and localized structural damage occurring when a material is subjected to
threshold, microscopic cracks begin to appear at stress concentrators such as the surface,
persistent slip bands, and grain interfaces. Eventually, cracks reach a critical size, propagating suddenly, resulting in failure.
 Carbon steel weld covered in paint

Defects Found in Carbon Steel

Cracking

Cracking is the most prevalent type of defects in in-service carbon steel welds. Cracks come in various shapes and
sizes, from surface-breaking cracks to stress-corrosion cracking (SCC). Some of the
challenges of inspecting CS surfaces for defects are that they are often rough (hard on surface probes) and very often coated
with paint or other types of protective coatings. These often need to be removed to perform surface
inspections and then reapplied, which is both costly and time consuming, not to mention harmful to the environment.

Cracking includes:

 Longitudinal cracks parallel to the weld axis that may be along the
: Breaks in the surface
centerline of the weld, close to the weld toes, or in the heat-affected zone (HAZ), for example.

 Transverse cracks : Breaks in the surface perpendicular to the weld axis that may be
completely within the weld metal or may extend from the weld metal into the base metal.

 Crater cracks: Breaks in the surface that occur at the crater of a weld because welding was improperly
star cracks.
terminated. Crater cracks are also referred to as

 Branching cracks: Clusters of connected cracks originating from a common

crack.
 Stress-corrosion cracking: Crack growth leading to the failure of metals under the combined
action of corrosion and stress.
 Liquid penetrant testing on carbon steel weld

Other Types of Surface Defects

As mentioned above, a number of other types of defects can develop in base metal carbon steel and CS welds:

 Corrosion: Gradual material destruction by chemical reactions with the surrounding environment
 Surface porosity: Gas pores that break the carbon steel surface
 Lack of fusion: Poor adhesion of the weld bead to the base metal
 Pitting: Form of extremely localized corrosion leading to the creation of small “pits” in the metal
 Dents: Depressions in surfaces from pressure or blows

Detecting Defects in Carbon Steel

regularly inspected for

To prevent failures and prolong the life of assets, structures, and equipment, carbon steel must be

defects. There are several standards governing this activity, published by ASTM International, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)
and the International Standards Organization (ISO). These standards state that ultrasonic testing (UT), eddy current testing (ECT, including eddy current
array), magnetic particle testing (MT), and liquid penetrant testing (PT) may be used to inspect for surface-breaking defects, according to specific guidelines.

ASTM E3052-16

ASTM E3052-16 covers the use of ECA sensors for the non-destructive te