Effects of Laser Shock Peening Technology on Stress Corrosion Cracking of Austenitic Steel

This article deals with the treatment of surface properties of austenitic steels using Laser shock peening (LSP) technology. It is a process in which the surface of the material is strengthened by a pulsed laser beam. The laser pulse generates a strong compression shock wave after impacting the component surface. This spreads through the material and introduces residual compressive stresses into the surface layer. These stresses improve the technical properties of the material, improving resistance to stress corrosion cracking. The aim of the tests was to influence the austenitic steel 08CH18N10T by LSP technology, to carry out a corrosion test under the action of a boiling MgCl2 salt solution, and to subsequently evaluate these tests. MgCl2-based salt is one of the candidate coolant media for new types of Generation IV nuclear reactors. Furthermore, the hardness of the peened and non-peened part of the material was measured. These tests brought information about the resistance of the peened material to the non-peened material.