Transgranular stress corrosion cracking of low-alloy steels in diluted solutions

The state of knowledge in the field of transgranular stress corrosion cracking (TGSCC) of low-alloy steels (LAS) in near-neutral diluted solutions was reviewed, with particular attention to the understanding of cracking mechanisms and to determination of the important parameters for onset of cracking phenomena. The principal industrial fields where LAS are used have been reported, and the need to use findings from all research teams concerned with the problem was stressed. Attention was focused particularly on results obtained on nuclear reactor pressure vessel (RPV) steels, whose behavior is similar to that of LAS for buried pipelines. Further research will be important to understand the crack nucleation phase and time-dependent effects. The goal should be to identify service parameters responsible for onset and growth of environmentally assisted cracks