[en] To study the weldability of the newly developed AA7019 aluminium alloy, both mechanical and corrosion resistant properties of its Gas Metal Arc(GMA) weldment were evaluated. GMA butt welds with A5356 filler metal were made in the flat and vertical positions of 30mm thick plates. The results of mechanical tests performed on test coupons, which were removed from the welded plates (naturally aged at least 30 days), were correlated directly with softening and subsequent recovery of the strength in the HAZ (Heat Affected Zone) whereas the strength of the weld metal was not significantly affected. The susceptibility to the corrosion and stress-corrosion cracking in an aqueous salt solution (3.5wt.% NaCl) was also evaluated in each weldment. A combination of susceptible microstructure and galvanic coupling was determined as the cause of SCC(Stress Corrosion Cracking) failure, which occurs preferentially in the HAZ adjacent to the weld bead. Results of this study suggest that development of new filler metals higher in strength and avoiding severe corrosion environment be considered for the optimum application of GMAW of AA7019 alloy. (Author)

[en] The Sulfide Stress Corrosion Cracking (SSCC) resistance of structural steels in one of the critical concerns for the operators, material designers, and fabricators of oil-field equipment, especially treating sour gas (H2S) containing fluids. As far as its fabricators concerned, the systematic care of welding parameters should be taken to obtain comparable SSCC resistance of their weldment to that of its base material. In this respect, every different type of welding joint design for this use should be verified to be SSCC-proof with relevant test procedures. In this study, the welding parameters to secure a proper SSCC resistance of steel pipe's weldments were reviewed on the Welding Procedure Qualification Records (WPQR), which had been employed for actual fabrication of an offshore structure for oil and gas production. Based on this review, a guideline of welding parameters, such as, heat input, welding consumable for Y.S. 65 ksi class steel pipe material is proposed in terms of the NACE criteria for SSCC resistance

[en] Pre-construction primer (PCP), or shopprimer, have been applied to steel plates to control temporary corrosion during ship fabrication. For surface preparation at ship block stage, in common shipyard practices, welding beads, burnt and rested areas shall be blasted or power tool cleaned and the contamination such as zinc salt shall be removed with blasting or power tool. Whereas, the sound film of PCP needs not to be removed or roughened as the paint having good compatibility with PCP is used for the first coat. In many cases, however, full blasting or sweep blasting on the sound PCP treated block assemblies was requested. There still has been argument about the legitimacy of this practice, thus, it is critical to evaluate the quality of the coating system applied on the sound PCP retained condition, comparing with the one applied on the full blasted or sweep blasted condition. In this study, two different epoxy systems for water ballast tank were applied on the surfaces with sound PCP condition, full blasted condition, and sweep blasted condition. Coating performances such as durability, anti-corrosion, cathodic disbondment resistance were evaluated. The test results clearly indicated that the sound film of PCP needed not to be removed or roughened as the paint having good compatibility with PCP based on inorganic zinc silicate

[en] One of the critical issues in the coating specification is the allowable limit of surface contaminant(s) - such as soluble salt(s), grit dust, and rust - after grit blasting. Yet, there is no universally accepted data supporting the relationship between the long-term coating performance and the amount of various surface contaminants allowed after grit blasting. In this study, it was attempted to prepare epoxy coatings applied on grit-blasted steel substrate dosed with controlled amount of surface contaminants - such as soluble salt(s), grit dust, and rust. Then, coating samples were subjected to 4,200 hours of cyclic test(NORSOK M-501), which were then evaluated in terms of resistance to rust creepage, blistering, chalking, rusting, cracking and adhesion strength. Additional investigations on the possible damage at the paint/steel interface were carried out using an Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy(EIS) and observations of under-film-corrosion. Test results suggested that the current industrial specifications were well matched with the allowable degree of rust, whereas the allowable amount of soluble salt and grit dust after grit blasting showed a certain deviation from the specifications currently employed for fabrication of marine vessels and offshore facilities