Season Cracking
Stress corrosion cracking of brass in ammonia-bearing air, driven by residual forming stress.
Cold formed brass retains tensile stress at the surface. Add trace ammonia — fertiliser stores, animal housing, some cleaning agents — and cracks appear with no load applied, which is why the fault was historically blamed on the monsoon season. A stress relief anneal at 250 to 300 °C after forming removes the residual stress without softening the part, and is standard practice on deep drawn cartridge brass.
Related terms
Where this applies
brass-rods-sections
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