Titanium alloys have high specific strength and excellent corrosion resistance and have been applied in deep-sea engineering fields. However, stress corrosion cracking may become one of the biggest threats to the service safety of a high-strength titanium alloy, as well as its weldment. In this work, stress corrosion cracking of a gas-tungsten-arc-welded Ti-6Al-3Nb-2Zr-1Mo (Ti6321) alloy influenced by the applied potentials in simulated deep-sea and shallow-sea environments was investigated by combining slow strain rate testing with electrochemical measurements. The results showed that the service environment and applied potential have a substantial effect on the stress corrosion cracking behavior of the Ti6321 welded joint. The Ti6321 welded joint exhibited higher stress corrosion susceptibility in a simulated deep-sea environment and at a strong polarization level owing to the diminishing protection of the passive film under passivation inhibition and the enhancement of the hydrogen effect. The fracture of a Ti6321 welded joint in the weld material could be attributed to the softening effect of the thick secondary α within the coarse-grained martensite. The electrochemical evaluation model of stress corrosion cracking susceptibility of a Ti6321 welded joint in a simulated marine environment was established by adding the criterion in the passivation region based on the literature model, and four potential regions corresponding to different stress corrosion cracking mechanisms were classified and discussed. Our study provides useful guidance for the deep-sea engineering applications of Ti6321 alloys and a rapid assessment method of stress corrosion risk.
Keywords: deep sea; electrochemical behavior; stress corrosion cracking; titanium alloy; welded joint.