Corrosion, embrittlement, and cracking - definitions and translations

Another entry in the "Metallurgy in Polish and English" series—a Polish–English technical glossary dedicated to the lesser-known types of corrosion affecting steels and heat-resistant and creep-resistant nickel alloys, complete with definitions.

Corrosion EN-PL

Alkaline corrosion - korozja alkaliczna 

Alternating immersion corrosion - korozja przy zmiennym zanurzeniu 

Anode corrosion - korozja anodowa 

Aquenous corrosion - korozja w roztworach wodnych

Atmospheric corrosion - korozja atmosferyczna - general corrosion caused by air, rain and gases.

Biocorrosion - korozja biologiczna  

Breakaway corrosion - korozja katastrofalna (totalna) 

Cavitation corrosion - korozja kawitacyjna -

Chemical corrosion, dry corrosion - korozja chemiczna - chemical oxidation of metals in dry gases or non-electrolyte liquids.

Contact corrosion - korozja stykowa 

Corrosion (general term) - korozja - deterioration in the properties of a metal resulting from chemical or electrochemical interaction with the environment.

Crevice corrosion - korozja szczelinowa - Localized corrosion occurring in narrow crevices where oxygen is absent, preventing the passive layer from reforming. Similar corrosion can occur beneath contaminants, also due to limited access to oxygen.

Drop corrosion - korozja kroplowa 

Dry corrosion - korozja na sucho 

Electrochemical corrosion- - korozja elektrochemiczna - corrosion caused by the flow of electrons between cathodic and anodic regions on the surface of metals.

Erosion corrosion, turbulence corrosion - korozja erozyjna 

Fatigue corrosion - korozja zmęczeniowa 

Filamentary corrosion - korozja włóknista 

Filiform corrosion, thread-form corrosion - korozja nitkowa 

Fretting corrosion - korozja cierna - corrosion of contacting surfaces, where the factor that accelerates corrosion is the slight oscillatory movement of these surfaces relative to one another.

Galvanic corrosion - korozja galwaniczna - corrosion of two different metals which have different standard electrode potentials, are electrically connected, and are immersed in an electrolyte. The more chemically active metal corrodes.

General corrosion - korozja ogólna - corrosion that occurs at approximately a constant rate across the entire surface of the metal.

Graphitic corrosion - korozja grafityczna

High-temperature corrosion or gas corrosion -  korozja gazowa, wysokotemperaturowa korozja gazowa - corrosion in which the only corrosive agent is a gas, and there is no aqueous solution on the surface of the corroding metal. Gas corrosion refers to the totality of processes that occur as a result of the metal’s interaction with a gaseous environment. When naming high-temperature corrosion specifically, one is reffering to corrosion in various types of exhaust gases or environments containing sulfur, hydrogen sulfide, or halogens.

Impingement corrosion - korozja udarowa - corrosion that occurs at grain boundaries and progresses into the material, with only slight corrosion of the outer surfaces of the grains forming the boundary. This is a dangerous type of damage that causes a significant decrease in strength properties and is difficult to detect.

Intergranular corrosion, intercrystalline corrosion - korozja międzykrystaliczna -corrosion that occurs at grain boundaries and progresses into the material, with only slight corrosion of the outer surfaces of the grains forming the boundary. This is a dangerous type of damage that causes a significant decrease in strength properties and is difficult to detect.

Knive-line attack - korozja nożowa

Layer corrosion, exfoliation corrosion - korozja warstwowa

Liquid-metal corrosion - korozja w stopionych metalach

Local corrosion, localized corrosion  - korozja lokalna - general term describing corrosion that occurs selectively only in certain areas exposed to a corrosive environment. Examples include crevice corrosion, pitting corrosion, intergranular corrosion, and stress corrosion cracking.

Microbiological corrosion - korozja bakteryjna

Nuclear corrosion - korozja jądrowa 

Oxygen-consuming corrosion - korozja z depolaryzacją tlenową

Pitting - korozja wżerowa - localized corrosion confined to deep pits, happens particularly often in chloride environments.

Point corrosion - korozja punktowa 

Radiolytic corrosion - korozja radiacyjna 

Selective corrosion - korozja selektywna 

Spot corrosion - korozja plamista 

Stray-current corrosion - korozja pod wpływem prądów błądzących 

Stress-corrosion cracking, SCC - korozja naprężeniowa - localized corrosion caused simultaneously by stresses (internal or external), a corrosive environment (which normally does not cause corrosion of a given alloy in the absence of stress), and elevated temperatures.

Subsurface corrosion - korozja w głębi fazy metalicznej

Sulfur corrosion - korozja siarkowa

Total immersion corrosion - korozja przy całkowitym zanurzeniu

Underfilm corrosion - korozja podpowłokowa

Underground corrosion, soil corrosion - korozja gruntowa

Uniform corrosion, general corrosion - korozja jednorodna

Weld decay - korozja spoin

Wet corrosion - korozja w ośrodkach ciekłych

Embrittlement EN-PL

300-degree embrittlement - kruchość 300°C - read "irreversible temper embrittlement"

475-degree embrittlement -  kruchość 475°C - corrosion-resistant steel brittleness caused by prolonged exposure to temperatures of 400–510°C. This is caused by precipitating Cr. This type of brittleness can be eliminated by heating the steel above the precipitation temperature of the Cr-rich phase and then cooling it.

Blue-shortness - kruchość na niebiesko, kruchość spowodowana starzeniem odkształceniowym 

Brittleness, embrittlement (general term) - kruchość - tendency to fracture without significant prior plastic deformation (brittle fracture). 

Caustic cracking, caustic embrittlement - kruchość alkaliczna 

Cold-shortness - kruchość na zimno 

Corrosion embrittlement - kruchość korozyjna 

Creep embrittlement - kruchość wywołana pełzaniem 

Hot-shortness, red-shortness, red embrittlement - kruchość na gorąco - the tendency of certain alloys to fracture along grain boundaries when subjected to stress or deformation near their melting point. This is caused by impurities in the alloy.

Hydrogen embrittlement, pickle brittleness, acid brittleness - kruchość wodorowa - reduction in the metal’s fracture toughness and ductility caused by the effects of hydrogen. Depending on the mechanism, a distinction is made between internal hydrogen embrittlement (see “internal hydrogen-induced cracking”), which is caused by hydrogen entering the metal bath, and environmental hydrogen embrittlement, which is caused by the absorption of hydrogen by the material in the solid state (see “hydrogen-induced cracking”).

Irreversible temper embrittlement - kruchość odpuszczania nieodwracalna - high-strength alloy steel embrittlement caused by tempering in the 200–370°C range. This may be due to the combined effects of cementite precipitation at the primary austenite grain boundaries and martensite striations, as well as the segregation of impurities to the primary austenite grain boundaries.

Liquid Metal Embrittlement, LME - kruchość ciekłometaliczna - total failuire of a brittle material that is normally ductile but becomes brittle as a result of contact with molten metal and when subjected to tensile stress.

Nitrate embrittlement - kruchość azotanowa 

Notch brittleness - kruchość udarowa 

Radiation embrittlement - kruchość popromienna 

Rheotropic brittleness - kruchość reotropowa 

Sigma phase embrittlement - kruchość fazy σ (sigma) - corrosion-resistant austenitic and ferritic steels embrittlement caused by the precipitation of a hard and brittle σ phase at grain boundaries during prolonged annealing at temperatures of 560–980°C. This brittleness can further lead to intergranular corrosion.

Sulfide embrittlement - kruchość siarczkowa 

Temper embrittlement - kruchość odpuszczania odwracalna - low-alloy steel brittleness caused by annealing or slow cooling within the temperature range of 300–600°C. This results in the segregation of arsenic, antimony, phosphorus, tin, and other impurities to the grain boundaries. Reversible brittleness can be eliminated by heating the steel above the brittleness temperature range and then cooling it rapidly.

Cracking EN-PL

Fire cracking - pękanie podczas nagrzewania

Hydrogen Induced Cracking, HIC - pękanie wodoropochodne - hydrogen bubbles are formed at varying distances from the surface, subsequently connected by cracks.

Intercrystalline cracking - pękanie międzykrystaliczne - cracking that propagates along grain boundaries.

Stress-corrosion cracking, SCC - pękanie naprężeniowo-korozyjne - cracking caused by a corrosive environment and stresses, whether residual or tensile.

Stress-Oriented Hydrogen Induced Cracking, SOHIC - pękanie naprężeniowo-wodorowe - cracking caused by the action of hydrogen in the metal and tensile stresses. It occurs in high-strength alloys.

Transcrystalline cracking - pękanie transkrystaliczne - cracking that spreads through the grains.