A metallographic examination was performed on a lap joint section of a KC-135 tanker aircraft. Although the outside surface gave little indication of corrosion, extensive corrosion was found on the faying surface of the joint section. This paper describes a detailed examination of the different forms of corrosion found on the lap joint, with emphasis on the intergranular attack under the exfoliation corrosion. The potential detrimental effect of exfoliation on the structural integrity of lap joints is discussed.

Subject
Hydroxides, Metal surfaces, Skin, Aluminum, Metallography, Joints, Optical micrographs, Fasteners, Aluminum alloys, Exfoliation corrosion, Intergranular corrosion, Grain, Types of corrosion
Government work published by the Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP) with permission of the author(s). Positions and opinions advanced in this work are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of AMPP. Responsibility for the content of the work lies solely with the author(s).
1999
GOV
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