Stress Corrosion Cracking of Cast 6063 and Deep Drawn 1017 Aluminum Utensils In Lycopersicum esculentum

• Published in: Journal of materials engineering and performance Vol. 16; no. 6; pp. 720 - 725
• Main Authors: Balogun, S.A., Esezobor, D.E., Adeosun, S.O.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer Nature B.V 01.12.2007
• Subjects: Aluminum base alloys; Cooking; Heating; Hydrogen embrittlement; Kitchen utensils; Pits; Surface layer; Texture
• ISSN: 1059-9495; 1544-1024
• DOI: 10.1007/s11665-007-9109-0

In the black world cup-shaped utensils cast or deep drawn are usually used for cooking purpose. The utensils are made from deep drawn aluminum alloy of the 1xxx series and for cast 6xxx series. The cylindrical shape utensil is subjected to domestic heating cycles and after a while, tiny hole-like features termed pits will appear. This development will eventually shorten the service life of aluminum cooking utensils. This article examines the chemical response of deep drawn and cast utensils made from 1017 and 6063 aluminum alloys, respectively, in solution of Lycopersicum esculentum at a temperature other than ambient temperature. The results show that cast cylindrical utensils pit much more readily than deep drawn utensils. This occurrence is traceable to the presence of microcracks as a result of hydrogen embrittlement phase, precipitation of brittle second phase particles and the fine texture in cast utensils. The aluminum alloy can fail by cracking along grain boundaries when exposed to specific environments.