j o u r n a l o f m a t e r i a l s r e s e a r c h a n d t e c h n o l o g y 2 0 2 3 ; 2 4 : 7 7 3 2 e7 7 4 4

Available online at www.sciencedirect.com

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jmrt

Stress corrosion cracking behavior of X80 pipeline

steel under alternating current, Desulfovibrio
desulfurican and cathodic protection potential

Qi Fu a,b,1, Qingyu Qin a,b,d,1, Boxin Wei a,b,c,*, Jin Xu a,b,c,**,

Changkun Yu b,c, Cheng Sun a,b,c,***
a
School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Shenyang, 110016,
China
b
Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang, 110016, China
c
Liaoning Shenyang Soil and Atmosphere Corrosion of Material National Observation and Research Station,
Shenyang, 110016, China
d
SAIC GM Wuling Automobile Co. Ltd., Liuzhou, 545007, China

article info abstract

Article history: The stress corrosion cracking (SCC) behavior of X80 pipeline steel under Desulfovibrio
Received 9 March 2023 desulfurican (D. desulfurican), alternating current (AC) and cathodic protection (CP) was
Accepted 5 May 2023 studied by the constant load tests and slow strain rate tensile (SSRT) test. The results
Available online 10 May 2023 showed that both AC interference and relatively negative CP potential aggravated pitting
corrosion and enhanced the SCC susceptibility under the constant load. In the saline soil
Keywords: environment containing D. desulfurican, the AC greatly contributed to the cracking ten-
X80 steel dency of X80 pipeline steel and resulted in the safe CP range that was too narrow for
Microbiologically influenced practical engineering application, thus requiring appropriate discharge methods.
corrosion (MIC) © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC
Alternating current (AC) BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Cathodic protection (CP)
Stress corrosion cracking (SCC)

[1e3]. However, due to the complex soil environment and

1. Introduction
With the substantial increase of energy demand such as oil
and natural gas in recent years, X80 pipeline steel has also
been widely used in the transportation of buried pipelines
stress conditions, stress corrosion cracking (SCC) often occurs
in buried pipeline steel. It occupies one of the key factors that
compromise the safe operation and service life for the pipe-
line, so the major pipeline accidents caused by it occur from
time to time [4e6].

* Corresponding author.
** Corresponding author.
*** Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: bxwei17s@imr.ac.cn (B. Wei), xujin@imr.ac.cn (J. Xu), chengsun@imr.ac.cn (C. Sun).
1
School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China Shenyang 110016 China, and Institute of
Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences Shenyang 110016 China.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmrt.2023.05.055
2238-7854/© 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
 j o u r n a l o f m a t e r i a l s r e s e a r c h a n d t e c h n o l o g y 2 0 2 3 ; 2 4 : 7 7 3 2 e7 7 4 4
Table 1 e The elemental composition of API X80 pipeline steel (wt%).
C Mn Si P S Cr Ni
0.07 1.82 0.19 0.007 0.023 0.026 0.17
SCC is known to occur primarily on the basis of localized
corrosion, while sulfate reducing bacteria (SRB) and alter-
nating stray currents have been shown to cause localized
corrosion (mainly pitting corrosion) on steel surfaces, which
are important reasons for pipeline SCC [7e9]. The pitting pits
can be used as the starting point of crack initiation and
eventually lead to the occurrence of pipeline SCC. The role
played by alternating current (AC) on near-neutral pH solu-
tions in influencing SCC susceptibility was discussed by Wan
et al. [10]. They concluded that AC not only had a localized
corrosion enhancement effect on X80 pipeline steel, but also
improved SCC sensitivity. Zhu et al. [11] explored the SCC
behavior of various AC density disturbances on X80 pipeline
steel in alkaline solution. They concluded that AC density had
a positive relationship with the corrosion rate of steel and that
AC superposition in alkaline solution had an increasing effect
on SCC susceptibility. They also believed that X80 pipeline
steel presented intergranular fracture characteristics due to
anodic dissolution in the absence of AC current; however, the
high AC density applied to the steel under the mixture
mechanism of anodic dissolution and hydrogen embrittle-
ment (HE) caused the transgranular fracture characteristics
[12]. For SCC affected by biological factors, SRB can alter the
surrounding soil environment, and undergo sulfate reduction
reaction under the action of extracellular electron transfer
(EET) [13e15]. During this process, hydrogen atoms are pro-
duced, which may lead to HE, thus improving the SCC sus-
ceptibility of pipeline steel [16e19].
Currently, cathodic protection (CP) and anticorrosive
coatings are commonly used to treat corrosion hazards in
pipelines. However, once the anticorrosive coatings peel and
crevices are formed, which creates a good anaerobic envi-
ronment that favors the growth and propagation of SRB [20]. It
was found by Wu et al. [21] that the combination of SRB and
stress could conjointly promote secondary pitting and sec-
ondary cracks, thus shortening the fracture time of pipeline
steel. They also pointed out that for X80 steel in Shenyang
neutral solution, CP and SRB contributed to its SCC suscepti-
bility, and the two could synergistically promote SCC of X80
steel [22]. The SCC behavior for X80 pipeline steel under the
action of CP and SRB was directed by Xie et al. [23]. They
thought that CP potential promoted the hydrogen evolution
reaction in a positive direction during the negative shift, while
pitting corrosion caused by SRB provided the basis for crack
nucleation. Both increased SCC susceptibility and HE risk of
pipeline steel. Their team members also found that SRB could
enhance the cathodic hydrogen evolution reaction under CP,
resulting in hydrogen-induced cracking (HIC) of steels [16].
In the actual environment, X80 steel in buried service will
be subject to both SRB, AC and CP. During the application of
AC interference, CP potential will be significantly disturbed,
further affecting the rate of iron dissolution and cathodic re-
action proceeding, thus altering the propensity to cracking of
the pipeline steel [24]. Furthermore, applied AC also affect
7733
Cu Al Mo Ti Nb V N B Fe
0.02 0.028 0.23 0.012 0.056 0.002 0.004 0.0001 Balance
sessile SRB cells on the sample surface, which causes changes
in the local environment on the steel surface, and conse-
quently to differences in the SCC behavior [25]. Therefore,
under the action of CP, the mechanism of AC on the cracking
susceptibility for X80 samples in biological media containing
SRB is not clear, and needs further investigation.
The objective of this study is to reveal an intensive and
systematic study for the role of AC in the stress cracking
susceptibility of X80 high-strength pipelines exposed to SRB
and CP. This paper was carried out in the Dagang saline soil
containing SRB with or without AC interference, and the in-
fluence of AC and SRB in the corrosion process of X80 steel
under CP protection was determined. To explore above
mentioned contents, the experiment was carried out using
confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM), weight loss test,
scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray photoelectron
spectroscopy (XPS) and slow strain rate tensile (SSRT) testing.
2. Materials and methods
2.1. Preparation of X80 steel, microbial cultivation and
experimental media
The sample used in this experiment was API X80
high-strength steel, purchased through China Baoshan Iron
& Steel Co. and its elemental composition was detailed in
Table 1. Table 2 listed the mechanical properties of X80 pipe-
line steel in air, where s0.2, sb and j represented yield strength,
tensile strength and reduction in area (RA) respectively, as
measured by tensile tests. In this experiment, the dimensions
of the tensile samples were the same as in previous studies
[25]. Before the test, all tensile samples were scraped succes-
sively from 120 grit to 800 grit with silicon carbide sandpaper,
then cleaned using acetone and anhydrous alcohol, finally
placed in a cold air stream for drying.
The strain used in this experiment was Desulfovibrio desul-
furican (D. desulfurican), one of SRB. The strain was cultured
using API RP-38 medium containing 0.2 g/L MgSO4$7H2O, 10 g/L
NaCl, 0.5 g/L KH2PO4, 0.1 g/L ascorbic acid, 4 g/L sodium lactate
and 1 g/L yeast extract with the pH value between 7.0 and 7.2
[5]. Prior to cultivation, the culture solution was deoxidized
with filtered and sterilized nitrogen of >99.999% purity, sub-
sequently autoclaved at 121
C for 20 min. D. desulfurican seeds
used in the experimental procedure were obtained by pre-
cultivation in an incubator at 37
C for one day.
Table 2 e Mechanical properties of API X80 pipeline steel
in air.
Steel Yield strength Tensile strength Reduction s0.2/
s0.2 (MPa) sb (MPa) in aera j sb
API 5L X80 580 627 69% 0.93
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Table 3 e Chemical composition of Dagang soil (wt%).
pH Cl SO2
4 NO
3 HCO
3 Ca2þ
8.76 1.71 0.25 0.014 0.025 0.034
The coastal saline soil used in the experiment was from
Dagang, China, and its physicochemical properties were
shown in Table 3. The biotic environment required for this
experiment was prepared by mixing 800 g of Dagang soil that
had been dried, screened and sterilized by ultraviolet light for
30 min, 80 ml of API RP-38 medium containing D. desulfurican
and 200 ml of deionized water treated with high purity ni-
trogen and autoclaving. The abiotic solution was used as the
control, and 80 ml of sterile and deoxygenated medium was
added to replace 80 ml D. desulfurican medium. After 14 days of
the experiment, sessile and planktonic D. desulfurican cells
were counted using the most probable number (MPN) method.
All anaerobic operations were conducted using a sealed glove
box whose interior excluded oxygen by passing nitrogen.
2.2. Experimental procedures
2.2.1. Constant load test under AC, D. desulfurican and CP
A stress loading experimental setup was used to perform
tensile experiments, as shown in Fig. 1. The applied load was
0.8s0.2 and repeated loading was required to maintain con-
stant stress value due to the relaxation of the steel. An AC
current (50 Hz, sine wave) of 100 A/m2 was applied to the steel
samples through an AC power (ITECH, China), and a loop
current flowed between the graphite and steel samples. Dur-
ing the whole constant stress test, different CP potentials
including open circuit potential (OCP), 850 mV, 1000 mV
and 1200 mV were applied to the samples.
2.2.2. SCC susceptibility test of X80 steel
For the SSRT test, the samples (sealed with anticorrosive
paint, working area of 1 cm2) and pre-prepared soil medium
were placed in a plexiglas box through a glove compartment
filled with high purity nitrogen according to the procedure
described in section 2.1, left at room temperature for 12 h and
then moved to a tensile machine. A constant CP potential was
applied to the samples by means of a potentiostat. The strain
Fig. 1 e Schematic diagram of the experimental test setup.
Mg2þ Kþ Naþ Organics Total nitrogen Total salt
0.07 0.014 1.05 0.48 0.034 3.17
rate of SSRT test was 106 s1, and the strain and stress were
recorded during the experiment.
During SSRT test, the corresponding CP potentials (OCP,
850 mV, 1000 mV and 1200 mV) were added to steel
samples through a three-electrode system, where the working
electrode was the X80 steel tensile sample, the counter elec-
trode was the graphite plate and the reference electrode was
the copperecopper sulfate electrode (CSE). After SSRT test, we
appraised the SCC susceptibility, and RA of X80 steel samples
after fracture under different conditions was calculated ac-
cording to the following formula:
RA ¼ ðS0  SF Þ = S0  100% (1)
where S0 and SF were the initial and final cross-sectional areas
of the tensile sample, respectively.
2.3. Corrosion rate measurement
Prior to the weight loss test, the tensile samples were weighed
using an electronic balance with 0.1 mg accuracy and the
weight was recorded as W1. Subsequently, they were taken
out after 14 days of experiment under different conditions and
the corrosion products formed on the surface of the samples
were carefully removed by mechanical and chemical methods
according to ASTM G1-03[26]. Mechanical methods included
light scraping and scrubbing, which removed closely adhered
corrosion products from the surface, and placing the samples
in the Clark's solution containing 20 g Sb2O3, 1 L HCl (r ¼ 1.19 g/
ml) and 50 g SnCl2 to remove residual corrosion products.
Finally, the sample after removal of corrosion products was
rinsed with deionized water and alcohol, dried and weighed,
and the weight was recorded as W2. The corrosion rates under
different conditions were obtained by sample weight and
immersion time [27].
2.4. Corrosion morphology characterization
In order to investigate whether D. desulfurican was involved in
the corrosion process of X80 pipeline steel at different CP
potentials, the corrosion products on the surface of the sam-
ples were gently scraped off after 14 days of experiment, and
the corrosion product composition was analyzed by XPS test
(ESCALAB 250, Thermo VG, USA). After 14 days of constant
load experiment, the surface corrosion morphology of the
tensile samples was observed using SEM technology (XL30-
FEG, Philips) at 20 kV beam voltage after removal of corrosion
products under different conditions. The maximum pitting
width and depth of pits on the steel surface were character-
ized by CLSM (Olympus, Japan).
For the SSRT test samples, first, the fractured tensile
samples were cut to remove the excess; then, the fracture and
the surface were cleaned using the method described in sec-
tion 2.3; finally, fracture morphology and the surface micro-
morphology near the fracture were observed by SEM.
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3. Results
3.1. Constant load test results
3.1.1. Cell count results and XPS analysis
Fig. 2 shows the count results of planktonic D. desulfurican cells
in soils and sessile D. desulfurican cells on X80 steel surface for
various CP potentials after 14 days of conducting constant
load experiments. As can be noted in the counting diagram
that when AC is not applied, there is no significant change for
the amount of planktonic D. desulfurican cells at different CP
potentials, while the negative shift of CP potential give rise to
the decrease of the amount of sessile D. desulfurican cells.
When AC is applied, planktonic D. desulfurican amount and
sessile D. desulfurican cells amount under the same CP po-
tential is less than that without AC. Compared with D. desul-
furican cells amount at OCP, the D. desulfurican cells amount at
the 850 mV potential is almost unchanged, and the D.
desulfurican cells amount at 1000 mV and 1200 mV poten-
tials is significantly reduced.
Fig. 3 displays the Fe 2p3/2 XPS fitting diagram in surface
corrosion products. According to the binding energy given by
NIST XPS database, the test data is fitted through XPSPEAK
software. The fitting diagrams show that FeS (712.1 eV), Fe3O4
(710.4 eV) and FeOOH (711.5 eV) sub peaks exist in Fe 2p3/2
spectra for various test environment. The FeS formed in the
film layer indicates that D. desulfurican participates in the
corrosion process.
3.1.2. Corrosion morphology observation
Fig. 4 shows the surface micromorphology for X80 steel sam-
ples after cleaning the surface film layer. It can be seen that no
matter whether AC interference exists, the erosion degree of
sample surface under 850 mV potential is significantly
reduced compared with that under OCP. With the negative
shift of CP potential to 1000 mV, the main erosion form for
sample surface is pitting corrosion, and no obvious uniform
corrosion is observed. However, as CP potential shifts further
to 1200 mV, X80 samples suffer from aggravated corrosion
and the number of pitting pits increases; with the existence of
Fig. 2 e Cell count results obtained by MPN method.
7735
AC interference, the erosion degree on X80 sample surface at
1200 mV potential is greater than that at 1000 mV potential.
CLSM is used to analyze the three-dimensional pitting
morphology for X80 sample surface after cleaning the surface
film layer (Fig. 5). The maximum depth and length of pits on
the sample surface are shown in Fig. 6. At the same CP po-
tential, the AC effect results in a greater depth and length of
the maximum pitting pits on the sample surface than on the
control sample surface. Under OCP, maximum pitting depth
and length on X80 sample surface are larger than those under
various CP potential. At 850 mV potential, the maximum
pitting depth of the sample surface is smaller than that under
other conditions, and the maximum pitting length under
850 mV potential is only smaller than that under OCP con-
dition. With the decrease of CP potential, surface maximum
pitting depth for X80 sample increases and the length
decreases.
3.1.3. Weight loss result
The corrosion rate for X80 steel in various test environment is
presented in Fig. 7. It can be observed from the weight loss
diagram that under same CP potential, the corrosion rate for
X80 sample with AC is greater than that of the sample without
AC. At the potential of 850 mV, the corrosion rate for X80
steel is significantly reduced compared with that of the OCP.
As the CP potential is negatively transferred to 1000 mV, the
corrosion rate of the sample is further reduced. As the CP
potential reaches 1200 mV, corrosion rate of X80 sample
rises more than that at 1000 mV, which may be related to the
augment of the amount in pitting pits (Fig. 4). The above re-
sults indicate that 1000 mV CP potential can greatly reduce
the corrosion rate for steel sample, but further negative shift
in CP potential does not improve the protection effect, and
even make the protection effect weakened.
3.2. SSRT test results
3.2.1. SSRT curves and RA
SSRT curves for steel samples in various test environment are
shown in Fig. 8. From Fig. 8, it can be seen that whether AC
interference is applied or not, the fracture strain of X80 steel
under 850 mV potential is greater than that under the OCP,
indicating that the 850 mV potential can reduce corrosion
cracking susceptibility of sample. As the CP potential shifts to
the negative direction, the fracture strain of X80 steel de-
creases, indicating that the plasticity in steel sample de-
creases and the corrosion cracking susceptibility increases.
Additionally, at same protect potential, the fracture strain in
X80 sample for the condition with AC interference is smaller
than that without AC interference, confirming that the
cracking sensitivity in X80 steel is increased through AC.
The RA for X80 steel sample after SSRT test in various
conditions is exhibited in Fig. 9. Under OCP, the RA of X80 steel
is 59% when AC interference is not applied, and decreases to
40% after AC interference is applied. Whether AC interference
is applied or not, the RA of X80 steel at 850 mV potential is
greater than that at OCP. At the same CP potential, AC inter-
ference makes the RA in X80 steel always smaller than that in
the absence of AC interference, indicating that AC interfer-
ence can promote the cracking process in X80 steel. The shift
7736 j o u r n a l o f m a t e r i a l s r e s e a r c h a n d t e c h n o l o g y 2 0 2 3 ; 2 4 : 7 7 3 2 e7 7 4 4

Fig. 3 e Fe 2p3/2 peak of X80 steel in different conditions (a) Without AC, OCP; (b) AC, OCP; (c) Without AC, ¡850 mV; (d) AC,
¡850 mV; (e) Without AC, ¡1000 mV; (f) AC, ¡1000 mV; (g) Without AC, ¡1200 mV; (h) AC, ¡1200 mV.

of the CP to the negative direction leads to a decrease in the RA
of X80 steel. For 1200 mV CP potential, the RA in X80 steel in
the absence of AC interference decreases to 30%, which is
about 1/2 of that under the OCP; the RA in X80 steel in the
presence of AC interference decreases to 13%, which is about
1/3 of that under the OCP.
3.2.2. Observation of fracture morphology and surface
morphology near fracture
The SSRT fracture morphology of X80 steel for various CP po-
tentials is presented in Fig. 10. Under OCP, a great quantity of
dimples appears on surface fracture morphology of the sam-
ples without AC interference, accompanied by quasi-cleavage
 j o u r n a l o f m a t e r i a l s r e s e a r c h a n d t e c h n o l o g y 2 0 2 3 ; 2 4 : 7 7 3 2 e7 7 4 4 7737

Fig. 4 e Micromorphology of X80 steel after the removal of corrosion products (a) Without AC, OCP; (b) AC, OCP; (c) Without
AC, ¡850 mV; (d) AC, ¡850 mV; (e) Without AC, ¡1000 mV; (f) AC, ¡1000 mV; (g) Without AC, ¡1200 mV; (h) AC, ¡1200 mV.

characteristics. After the application of AC interference, dim-
ples on the fracture become shallow and the number de-
creases, accompanied by obvious quasi-cleavage and brittle
fracture characteristics, demonstrating that AC improves the
corrosion cracking susceptibility in X80 steel sample. At
850 mV potential, the number of dimples at the fracture of
the sample is more than that at OCP. When AC interference is
not applied, the fracture morphology is mainly dimple, and
ductile fracture occurs in X80 steel. After AC interference is
applied, the dimple area decreases and the quasi-cleavage area
increases. At 1000 mV CP potential, the fracture of X80 steel
sample without AC interference is dominated by cleavage
fracture, with a few dimples; after AC interference is applied,
the fracture surface appears obvious cleavage fracture with a
few micropores. For 1200 mV CP potential, the fracture in X80
steel sample without AC interference appears pure cleavage
morphology, exhibiting a brittle fracture mode; the fracture of
the sample after AC interference is applied exhibits brittle
cleavage fracture with secondary cracks. The above results
indicate that 850 mV CP potential can effectively reduce
cracking susceptibility in X80 steel sample, and it exhibits
greater SCC susceptibility as CP potential is negatively shifted.
In addition, AC can promote the corrosion cracking process in
steel sample at all test potentials. And for the environment
with D. desulfurican, the CP potential and AC together increase
the SCC susceptibility in X80 steel sample.
Surface morphology near the SSRT fracture in X80 steel for
various CP potentials is exhibited in Fig. 11. Under OCP, the
X80 steel sample surface without AC interference is mainly
pitting corrosion, accompanied by a few microcracks; after AC
7738 j o u r n a l o f m a t e r i a l s r e s e a r c h a n d t e c h n o l o g y 2 0 2 3 ; 2 4 : 7 7 3 2 e7 7 4 4

Fig. 5 e CLSM images of X80 steel after the removal of corrosion products (a) Without AC, OCP; (b) AC, OCP; (c) Without AC,
¡850 mV; (d) AC, ¡850 mV; (e) Without AC, ¡1000 mV; (f) AC, ¡1000 mV; (g) Without AC, ¡1200 mV; (h) AC, ¡1200 mV.

interference is applied, the surface of the sample is distributed
with many cracks perpendicular to the tensile direction, and
no obvious pitting pits are observed. At 850 mV CP potential,
there are obvious pitting morphology on X80 steel surface, and
no microcrack is observed without AC; the cracks amount
with AC is less than that at the OCP. At the potential of
1000 mV, elongated cracks appear on X80 steel surface in
lack of AC; in the case of AC interference, the crack becomes
wider and its length increases. At 1200 mV potential, there
are many elongated cracks on X80 steel surface without AC; in
case of AC interference, obvious corrosion pits occur and large
cracks extend to the edge of the sample, causing fracture.

4. Discussion

4.1. Effect of CP and AC on the corrosion behavior of X80

pipeline steel under constant load and D. desulfurican

As described in section 3.1, at 1000 mV CP potential, sessile

D. desulfurican cells amount on X80 steel sample surface de-
creases by 1e3 orders of magnitude relative to that at the OCP,
but the total number remains at a high level. XPS analysis
results show that FeS exists in the corrosion products, which
confirms that D. desulfurican is involved in the corrosion pro-
cess for X80 steel sample under various CP potentials.
Without CP, severe pitting corrosion occurs under the ac-
tion of elastic stress and physiological activity of D. desulfur-
Fig. 6 e Maximum pitting depth and length of X80 steel ican, with a maximum pitting depth of about 32 mm (Fig. 6). The
sample. maximum depth of the pits on X80 steel surface after AC
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Fig. 7 e Corrosion rate of X80 steel in different conditions.
interference is about 87 mm. AC significantly aggravates the
pitting corrosion of the sample surface, which is related to
combined action of D. desulfurican, AC and stress.
The pH value for coastal saline soil with saturated water
content used in the experiment is 8.76, so the equilibrium
potential of hydrogen evolution reaction is as follows:
EH ¼  0:0591pH ¼  518 mV ðvs: SHEÞ ¼  834 mV ðvs: CSEÞ
(2)
in the case of 850 mV CP potential, anodic dissolution reac-
tion for iron oxidation is inhibited. Moreover, considering the
potential drop in soils, CP does not provide a sufficiently large
overpotential to facilitate hydrogen evolution [22]. Therefore,
the localized corrosion is significantly inhibited by 850 mV
potential, while the corrosion rate is significantly reduced.
Under 1000 mV CP potential, although anodic reaction pro-
cess is suppressed, the sufficiently large overpotential pro-
motes the acceleration of cathodic hydrogen evolution
reaction in the positive direction. The hydrogen produced may
make surface corrosion products film more loosened under
the action of tensile stress. As a result, erosive ions in soil are
Fig. 8 e SSRT curves of X80 steel in different conditions (a) Without AC; (b) AC.
7739
Fig. 9 e RA of X80 steel in different conditions.
more likely to diffuse to X80 steel sample surface and react
with the metal matrix. Therefore, at 1000 mV potential,
although the uniform corrosion rate decreases, the depth of
corrosion pits is larger than that at 850 mV. In the case of
1200 mV CP potential, hydrogen evolution reaction rate
further increases. Liduino [28] believed that although sessile
D. desulfurican cells amount attached to X80 steel surface was
reduced by applying CP potential, the large amount of H2
generated by cathodic hydrogen evolution reaction strength-
ened activity of D. desulfurican secreted hydrogenase in bio-
film. At 1200 mV potential, the cathodic depolarization of D.
desulfurican in biofilms is enhanced, and the cathodic reaction
rate increases, which indirectly promotes the dissolution of
iron. Meanwhile, the sulfide produced during D. desulfurican
corrosion is deposited on the sample surface, which leads to
the acceleration of localized corrosion. Therefore, the
maximum depth of pits and corrosion rate for X80 steel at
1200 mV CP potential are greater than those at 1000 mV.
Under the influence of AC, on the one hand, the oscillation
effect of AC loosens the corrosion product film, which makes
7740 j o u r n a l o f m a t e r i a l s r e s e a r c h a n d t e c h n o l o g y 2 0 2 3 ; 2 4 : 7 7 3 2 e7 7 4 4

Fig. 10 e The facture morphology of X80 steel (a) Without AC, OCP; (b) AC, OCP; (c) Without AC, ¡850 mV; (d) AC, ¡850 mV; (e)
Without AC, ¡1000 mV; (f) AC, ¡1000 mV; (g) Without AC, ¡1200 mV; (h) AC, ¡1200 mV.

the erosive ions in soils easier to contact X80 steel matrix. On
the other hand, the positive half-cycle AC increases the
anode current, which accelerates iron anodic dissolution
and weakens CP protective effect; the negative half-cycle AC
and CP potential together increase the overpotential and
indirectly contribute to the positive hydrogen evolution reac-
tion, resulting in further destruction for corrosion products
film structure, while the activity of D. desulfurican secreted
hydrogenase is greatly enhanced. Therefore, the corrosion
rate and maximum depth of pits in X80 steel due to AC
interference are larger than those for the lack of AC
interference.
Fig. 12 shows the schematic diagram of corrosion mecha-
nism of X80 steel under the combined action of D. desulfurican,
CP and AC. As can be seen from Fig. 12 (a), when AC is not
applied, some shallow pits appear on the surface of X80 steel
at 850 mV potential, which are mainly caused by D. desul-
furican and elastic stress. When 1200 mV potential is applied,
a large amount of H2 will be produced at the cathode, which
not only enhances the activity of D. desulfurican but also makes
the corrosion product film looser, thus increasing the pit
depth on the surface of X80 steel (Fig. 12b). At 850 mV po-
tential, the application of AC weakens the protective effect of
CP and accelerates the anodic dissolution of the steel (Fig. 12c).
Under the condition of AC, when the CP potential is further
shifted negatively to 1200 mV, the negative half-cycle of AC
and 1200 mV potential synergically promote the forward
progress of hydrogen evolution reaction and further enhance
the activity of D. desulfurican, so the pit is significantly deep-
ened (Fig. 12d).
 j o u r n a l o f m a t e r i a l s r e s e a r c h a n d t e c h n o l o g y 2 0 2 3 ; 2 4 : 7 7 3 2 e7 7 4 4 7741

Fig. 11 e Surface morphologies near the fracture of X80 steel (a) Without AC, OCP; (b) AC, OCP; (c) Without AC, ¡850 mV; (d)
AC, ¡850 mV; (e) Without AC, ¡1000 mV; (f) AC, ¡1000 mV; (g) Without AC, ¡1200 mV; (h) AC, ¡1200 mV.

4.2. Effect of AC on corrosion rate and CP potential We further elucidate the effect of AC on direct current (DC)
potential based on the model proposed by Lalvani and Lin [29]:
From section 3.1.3, it has been found that AC promotes an
 ∞

increase in the corrosion rate for X80 steel sample, and at CP EDC  Ecorr;DC X 1 Ep 2K
ia ¼ icorr;DC exp (3)
potential of 1200 mV, it is greater than that at the potential of ba K¼0 ðK!Þ
2
2ba
1000 mV. However, is there a synergistic acceleration effect

 ∞
2K
between AC and CP? It is analyzed by simple mathematical EDC þ Ecorr;DC X 1 Ep
ic ¼ icorr;DC exp (4)
operation. For the lack of AC, difference between the corrosion bc K¼0 ðK!Þ
2
2b c
rates at 1200 mV and 1000 mV CP potentials is about 0.005
mm/a, while in the presence of AC, the difference between the where ia and ic are the average anodic and cathodic current
two potentials is about 0.0244 mm/a. It can be seen that AC densities during the application of AC respectively, Ep is the
enhances the CP effect, and compared with 1000 mV, the peak potential, ba and bc are the anodic and cathodic Tafel
corrosion rate increases by about 18.3% in the absence of AC slopes, EDC is the DC potential during the application of AC,
and 33.1% with AC at 1200 mV CP potential. icorr,DC and Ecorr,DC are the corrosion current density and the
corrosion potential in the absence of AC respectively, K is a
7742 j o u r n a l o f m a t e r i a l s r e s e a r c h a n d t e c h n o l o g y 2 0 2 3 ; 2 4 : 7 7 3 2 e7 7 4 4

Fig. 12 e Schematic diagram of corrosion mechanism of X80 steel under the combined action of D. desulfurican, CP and AC (a)
Without AC, ¡850 mV; (b) Without AC, ¡1200 mV; (c) AC, ¡850 mV; (d) AC, ¡1200 mV.

real number. Since EDC is the corrosion potential of steel in the hydrogen atoms through cathode depolarization. The clas-
presence of AC (Ecorr,AC), the offset value a of DC potential after sical cathodic depolarization theory is described as follows:
AC application is calculated as follows [30]: Anodic reaction:
2 3
P
∞  2K 4Fe / 4Fe2þ þ 8e (6)
Ep
6 1 7
b b 6K¼0 ðK!Þ2 2ba 7
a ¼ Ecorr;DC  Ecorr;AC ¼ a c ln6  2K 7 (5) Cathodic reaction:
ba þ bc 6
4P
∞
1 Ep
7
5
2
ðK!Þ 2bc
K¼0 8Hþ þ 8e /8Hads (7)

According to Eqs. (3) and (4), when the ratio of tafel slope ba
to bc is less than 1, the increment of anodic current density is
greater than that of cathodic current density, which indicates
that anodic dissolution is accelerated. In our previous study,
anodic and cathodic tafel slopes under AC are 78 mV/dec and
336 mV/dec respectively [25]. As being able to be noticed from
Eq. (5) that DC potential for X80 steel sample under the action
of AC is more negative than that without AC, indicating that
AC can cause CP potential to move toward the negative di-
rection. Therefore, negative shift disturbance of CP potential
caused by AC may be the reason for the additional increase of
corrosion rate under the combined action of AC and CP.
4.3. Effect of CP and AC on SCC susceptibility of X80
pipeline steel under D. desulfurican
SSRT test results show that AC increases corrosion cracking
susceptibility for X80 steel sample at same CP potential. In the
meantime, CP and AC can cooperate to assist cracking ten-
dency. As mentioned in the section 4.1, the combined action
of AC, CP and D. desulfurican can induce pitting corrosion on
the sample surface. Tensile stress can lead to stress concen-
tration under the pits, promoting SCC crack initiation.
D. desulfurican exists in the soil environment, which can
secrete hydrogenase and accelerate the generation of
8Hads /4H2 (8)
Cathodic depolarization:
SO2
4 þ 8Hads / S
2
þ 4H2 O (9)
in addition, the metabolic process of D. desulfurican produces
S2, HS, and H2S that can accelerate reaction (7) and restrain
the reaction (8), giving rise to the increase of hydrogen con-
centration on the sample surface [31]. Hydrogen atoms can
accumulate at the crack tip, leading to anodic dissolution
intensification, thereby amplifying corrosion cracking sus-
ceptibility [32]. As described in section 4.1, the hydrogen
evolution rate accelerates with the decrease of CP potential. At
the same time, the ability of D. desulfurican in soil to secrete
hydrogenase is enhanced, which further increases the
hydrogen concentration on steel surface. Therefore, as CP
potential decreases, corrosion cracking tendency of X80
pipeline steel increases. As AC interference is imposed, the AC
negative half-cycle can promote the hydrogen evolution re-
action; the AC positive half-cycle promotes the iron dissolu-
tion rate at the crack tip and accelerates the crack growth [33].
Meanwhile, the AC electric field can accelerate the diffusion
rate of reaction ions and the diffusion of hydrogen atoms into
the metal matrix [34]. In summary, AC interference further
increases the corrosion cracking tendency.
 j o u r n a l o f m a t e r i a l s r e s e a r c h a n d t e c h n o l o g y 2 0 2 3 ; 2 4 : 7 7 3 2 e7 7 4 4
Fig. 13 e Failure/safety diagram of X80 pipeline steel in the
presence of AC and D. desulfurican.
For practical applications, RA is not a particularly practical
parameter for the evaluation of SCC susceptibility. Therefore,
the decrease of RA (Ij) is used to predict the fracture suscep-
tibility and calculate the reasonable CP potential in the
experimental condition [35,36]:


j
Ij ¼ 1  soil  100%
jair
where jsoil and jair is the RA of X80 pipeline steel in soil
environment and in air, respectively. Fig. 13 displays the
safety/failure diagram for X80 steel sample in presence of D.
desulfurican and AC. This data in the diagram corroborates that
the negative shift of CP potential and AC both improve the
fracture susceptibility for X80 pipeline steel, and the figure can
provide guidance for the reasonable selection of CP potential
of buried pipelines. If it is required to be less than 50%
(Ij < 50%), the CP potential should not be negative than
1146 mV when there is no AC interference; when there is AC
interference, CP potential should not be negative than
955 mV. Horvarth et al. [37] and Fischer et al. [38] concluded
that CP potential needed to be negative to 950 mV when D.
desulfurican was present in the environment, which was the
currently common CP standard. Therefore, the optional range
of CP potential in the environment without AC interference is
[950 mV, 1146 mV]. Considering that the CP potential will
fluctuate in engineering practice, it can be seen from the figure
that there is no suitable CP potential range for the environ-
ment once the AC interference is introduced, and for safety
reasons, some other protecting methods should be taken to
drain the AC current.
5. Conclusions
In this paper, the influence of CP on the stress corrosion
behavior of X80 pipeline steel under D. desulfurican and AC was
7743
investigated by constant load test and SSRT test. The main
conclusions were as follows.
(1) The CP potential had little effect on the growth and
reproduction of planktonic D. desulfurican cells in soils.
However, when the CP potential is lower than
1000 mV, the number of sessile D. desulfurican cells on
the surface of X80 steel sample was significantly
reduced.
(2) When the CP potential is 850 mV, the SCC suscepti-
bility of X80 pipeline steel decreased compared with
that under OCP. With the negative shift of CP potential,
the SCC susceptibility of X80 pipeline steel increased.
(3) At the same CP potential, X80 pipeline steel with AC
interference in Dagang saline soil had greater SCC sus-
ceptibility than that without AC interference.
(4) In the soil environment with D. desulfurican, when the
engineering design required that the SCC susceptibility
of X80 pipeline steel did not exceed 50% (Ij < 50%), the
optional range of CP potential in the environment
without AC interference was [950 mV, 1146 mV].
When AC interference existed, the SCC susceptibility of
X80 steel increased, and there was no reasonable CP
potential range. Some methods should be taken to drain
AC stray current.
Data availability statement
(10) Some or all data, models, or code that support the findings of
this study are available from the corresponding author upon
reasonable request.
Declaration of Competing Interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing
financial interests or personal relationships that could have
appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
Acknowledgments
This work was financially supported by the National Natural
Science Foundation of China (Nos. 51771213 and 51871228).
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