2.6 Corrosion in stressed products – stress corrosion cracking (SCC)
If a stress exists in a product exposed to a corrosive environment, the rate of corrosion can then increase and be extremely localised, such as at the tip of a growing crack. Furthermore, some specific chemicals are so aggressive that corrosion will occur at relatively low stress levels, such as those created during manufacture, for example. The residual stress in a component can then be enough to trigger crack growth and failure.