Effect of cutting process on the stress corrosion susceptibility of AISI 304L stainless steel

During manufacturing of a component, cutting, turning, grinding, and milling operations are inevitable and these operations induce surface residual stresses. In this study, it is shown that, depending on the process employed for cutting, residual stresses generated at the cut surfaces can vary widely and they can, in turn, make the cut surfaces of austenitic stainless steel (SS) prone to stress corrosion cracking (SCC). An austenitic SS 304L plate was cut using three different procesess: bandsaw cutting, cutting using the cut-off wheel, and shearing. Surface residual stress measurement using the X-ray diffraction (XRD) technique is carried out close to the cutting edges and on the cross-section. SCC susceptibility studies were carried out as per ASTM G36 in 45% boiling magnesium chloride solution. Optical microscopic examination showed the presence of cracks, and confocal microscopy was used to measure the depth of cracks. The study confirmed that high tensile residual stresses present in the cut surfaces produced by cut-off wheel and shear cutting make the surfaces susceptible to SCC while the surfaces produced by bandsaw cutting are resistant to SCC. Hence, it is shown that there is a definite risk of SCC for product forms of austenitic SS with cut surfaces produced using cutting processes that generate high tensile residual stresses stored for a long period of time in a susceptible environment.