On the role of intergranular carbides on improving the stress corrosion cracking resistance in a cold-worked alloy 600

The mitigating effect introduced by intergranular Cr carbides on the stress corrosion cracking propagation of a cold-worked Alloy 600 has been firstly examined through high-resolution 3-dimensional (3D) sequential sectioning. High-resolution transmission electron microscope (TEM) and transmission Kikuchi diffraction (TKD) are used to reveal the underlying mechanisms contributing to the mitigating effect. Previously reported mechanisms contributing to the increased stress corrosion cracking resistance are evaluated and discussed. A new mechanism based on grain boundary migration inhibition and crack path deviation is proposed