The stress corrosion behavior of AISI Type 304L stainless steel has been investigated in HZSO4/NaCl solutions using potentiostatically controlled and dynamically loaded wire specimens at room temperature. In this study the morphology of attack was varied with potentials such as corrosion potential, active/passive and passive/transpassive transition potentials. The morphologies observed included transgranular stress corrosion cracking, intergranular attack, pitting and general corrosion. The

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... extensive transgranular cracking was observed near the corrosion potential in 5 mol/l HZSO4/0.1 mol/l NaCI solution. In the other solutions transgranular cracking was also observed, but cracks were very shallow and failure was a ductile one. Stress corrosion morphology in acid aqueous solution containing Cl-ions was very complicated, depending upon a controlled potential and concentration of acid and/or chloride. Stress corrosion cracking proceeded under the condition where the surface film was stable and only slip steps were chemically active. The existence of various morphologies was consistent with the film break/reformation concept of stress corrosion cracking.