Corrosion Fatigu of offshore Structires in Marine Environments

Many large marine, fixed gas and oil production platforms are constructed from low strength structural steels. These structures are subject to cathodic protection in order to prevent their general corrosion. Maintenance of such structures and their long term integrity require the ability to understand the effect of cathodic’protection of their mechanical performance and a full knowledge of fracture mechanics. The fatigue performance of these C-Mn steels in saline solutions has been placed upon the role of environmental and mechanical parameters on fatigue crack growth rates . the loss In ductility and the enhanced crack growth increments have been attributed to a hydrogen embrittlement mechanism.