Time and Temperature Dependent Damage Characteristics of 5083 Al Alloy under Cavitation-Corrosion Condition

Continuous efforts to construct high-speed and lightweight ship have been made to reduce cost against growing oil prices. In this context, aluminum has received attention as an alternative material for steel, for small and medium-sized ships. In an effort to extend service life of aluminum, various researches have been attempting to improve the corrosion resistance and anti-corrosion characteristics by applying heat treatment and alloying. The material, however, has a high probability of being attacked by corrosion and erosion, caused by high ship speed in severe marine environments. Cavitation damage is dependent on several important factors, such as shape of objects, surface roughness, rotation speed, fluid pressure and velocity. Vapor pressure, density and surface tension of fluid are also taken into account. In this study, an electrochemical cavitation erosion-corrosion experiment was conducted as a function of solution temperature and applied amplitude for 5083-O aluminum alloy used commercially as a hull material for a small sized ship. The result of the experiment revealed that the damage was accelerated due to synergistic effect of corrosion and erosion as the solution temperature was elevated, and that the weight loss showed a steady increase with increasing time of cavitation.