Effect of selective dissolution on fatigue crack initiation in 2205 duplex stainless steel

The effect of selective dissolution on fatigue crack initiation of 2205 duplex stainless steel (DSS) was investigated in this study. In mixed sulfuric and hydrochloric acid aqueous solution, there existed two distinctly separated anodic peaks in the active-to-passive transition region of the polarization curve. Either ferritic or austenitic phase was selectively dissolved at each characteristic anodic peak potential. Under sinusoidal cyclic loading condition, however, selective dissolution did not assist fatigue crack initiation instead resulting in the elimination of stress concentration site in the selectively dissolving phase. As a consequence, under selective dissolution condition, fatigue crack initiated in the phase while its dissolution rate was lower with respect to the other constituent phase in the duplex stainless steel. The microstructural evolution of the corrosion fatigue crack initiation in 2205 DSS in the mixed sulfuric and hydrochloric acid solution is highlighted in this investigation. (c) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.