Flat growth of 7075, 7475, 7050 and 7049 aluminum alloy plate in stress corrosion environments: 2-year marine atmosphere results

Marine atmospheric exposure of smooth and precracked specimens from 7075, 7475, 7050 and 7049 plates support the conclusion that for a given strength level, the short transverse stress corrosion resistance of 7050-T7X and 7049-T7X is superior to that of 7075-T7X. The threshold stress intensity (K sub Iscc) for these alloys is about 25 MPa square root m at a yield strength of about 460 MPa; the corresponding yield strength level for 7075-T7X at this SCR level is about 425 MPa. Additional tests on two lots of high-toughness 7475 plate indicate that this alloy is capable of achieving K sub Iscc values of about 35 MPa square root m at yield strengths of 400-450 MPa. Precracked specimens from all these 7XXX-series alloys are subject to self loading from corrosion product wedging. This effect causes stress corrosion cracks to continue growing at very low apparent stress intensities, and should therefore be considered a potential driving force for stress corrosion in design and materials selection.