Stress corrosion cracking of natural gas pipelines in low-pH environments is a serious problem for the gas transmission industry. To date, researchers have experienced significant difficulties in reproducing cracking in the laboratory. This paper describes results of an ongoing program investigating crack growth of an API X-65 line pipe steel in a low-pH cracking environment using a J-integral technique. The primary objectives of this research are to reproduce the cracking observed in the field and identify an appropriate crack driving force parameter. Significant crack growth has been observed in the testing and the J-integral appears to be a good parameter for characterizing crack growth behavior.

Subject
Environmental cracking, Test methods, Crack growth, Materials, Piping, Intergranular stress corrosion cracking, Laboratory data, Pipelines, Crack velocity, Steel, Electric potential, Carbonate stress corrosion cracking, Stress corrosion cracking
Keywords:
Stress Corrosion Cracking, Pipelines, Crack Propagation, Low-pH Environment, Fracture Mechanics, J-Integral
© 1994 Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP). All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of AMPP. 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).
1994
Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP)
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