Chemical Deicing of Aircraft Runways

W. P. CONRARDY
Air Force Materials Laboratory, Wright-PattersonAir Force Base, Ohio

•THE UNITED 'STATES Affi FORCE must operate under all weather conditions. The
Air Defense Command, in particular, must be ready to scramble high-performance
jet interceptors in any kind of weather and at a moment's notice. A dry, skid-free
pavement is desirable for the safe take-off and landing of these aircraft.
Snow removal and ice control on airfields is a highly organized operation in many
parts of the world. Standard practice is to remove the bulk of frozen precipitation by
mechanical equipment such as plows, scrapers, and rotary brooms. Basically this
solves the problem for launching aircraft, some of which would otherwise have dif-
ficulty reaching take-off speed in 2 or more inches of snow. However, landing aircraft
and preventing skids during high-speed taxiing is a more critical problem. To stop a
high-speed aircraft within the limits of runway available, braking conditions must be
such that the aircraft can decelerate quickly without ground looping or running off the
pavement. Safe, quick acting deicing chemicals are needed for control of thin layers
of ice and snow not removed by mechanical means or for patch ice resulting from
freeze and thaw cycles. Unfortunately, such chemicals meeting USAF requirements
are simply not yet available. Consequently, the Air Force has tried a variety of un-
orthodox mechanical methods of ice removal without success. For example an attempt
has been made to break up thin layers of ice with disc harrows followed by a sweeper
for ice removal. However, ice adhesion on concrete is so tenacious that reasonable
quantities of ice cannot be adequately removed by this or variations of the method in
the time required. Considered also have been devices for melting the ice, such as
road burners and jet engine exhausts, which are also much too slow to be practical.
Coatings with very low adhesion to ice have been considered for use on both aircraft
and runway surfaces. This presumably would facilitate breaking up and sweeping off
the ice. Fluorinated hydrocarbons and some silicone materials have resulted in re-
duced adhesion (though not enough) on smooth aluminum surfaces but have had essen-
tially no effect on concrete. The relatively rough surface of concrete pavement pro-
vides a strong mechanical bond to ice in addition to the very strong chemical bond
normally encountered on most surfaces. To date no chemical method of ice control
equivalent in effectiveness to chloride salt deicing has appeared. Therefore, the Air
Force is forced to use sodium chloride and calcium chloride in those areas where ice
is prevalent and active runways must be kept open.
Although suitable for highway use, loose abrasives are not used on jet runways be-
cause of the problem of ingestion into engines. The air intake suction of jet engines
is such that loose objects can be sucked right through the engine. Large objects such
as nuts and bolts can cause immediate disintegration of the engine; however, even
small particulate matter such as sand and cinders cause severe erosion to compressor
blades and turbine buckets. To avoid the use of corrosive chemicals and still provide
braking action on runways, the RCAF in Canada sprays iced runways with water, and
follows immediately with a sanding vehicle. The sand is held tightly by the ice formed
and provides an abrasive surface which aids in braking aircraft. The amount of water
and sand dispersed must be carefully controlled and such surfaces must be swept clean
of loose material as it forms to keep the ingestion and erosion problem on turbine
engine components under control.

Paper sponsored by Committee on Snow and Ice Control.

19
 ·.

20

Although civil engineers are concerned primarily with the effects of deicing chemi-
cals on concrete pavements, the Air Force Materials people are much more interested
in the effects of these materials on aircraft structural components. Concrete pave-
ment deterioration is costly to repair; however , stress corrosion fractures of aircraft
structures result in loss of life and loss of expensive first-line offensive and defensive
.. . weapons systems .
On low- strength materials suc h as the s te els used in bridges and highway ve hicl es,
corr osion is ge neral, gr adual and give s obvious evide nc e that mainte nance is r equired,
long before any failur e occurs . In addition, quite effec tive preventive measures a re
e mployed in the fo r m of prote ctive coatings. It is common p ractice to m1de r coa t vehi-
cles, for example , and eve n whe n neglec ted, the corrosion problem is primarily one
of a nnoyance and replace ment cost. On the other ha nd, s tress corrosion is extremely
insidious. The USAF has experienced any number of failures from this cause , most
of which showed little or no indication of corrosion on the surface before fracture of
the part. Stress corrosion involves a complex interaction of sustained surface tension
stresses and corrosive attack that results in rapid cracking and the premature brittle
failure of a normally ductile material. The phenomenon has been observed in many
metals and alloys, including both the low-alloy and stainless steels, high-strength
aluminum alloys, titanium , and brass. There is apparently a direct relationship be-
tween the strength level of an alloy and its susceptibility to fracture by the stress cor-
rosion mechanism.
The 7000 series aluminum alloys commonly used in modern aircraft are in the
65, 000 psi yield strength range and above. Low-alloy steels commonly used in air-
craft landing gear are all heat-treated to more than 200, 000 psi and it is not uncommon
to find them- us-ed in equipment a the 2ou;-ouo to- 28-0, 000 psi levels. Forgings made
from materials at these high-strength levels are particularly susceptible to stress
cracking because material in this form is often subjected to significant stress in the
short transverse grain direction. Grain direction has a significant influence on stress
cracking. An alloy is least susceptible in the longitudinal direction, more so in the
transverse, and most susceptible in the short transverse. Therefore, stress crack-
ing will occur at relatively low-stress levels if a given component is loaded in the
short transverse direction and simultaneously exposed to a corrosive environment.
In high-strength aluminum this stress level need be only 10 percent of its yield
strength.
Components presenting the greatest difficulty are landing gear and heavy forgings
such as in wing attachment fittings. Both are regularly exposed to the corrosive en-
vironment encountered on chemically treated runways during landing and take -off.
Although protective coatings are often used, the erosion from particulate matter and
other wear often leave these coatings chipped and damaged so that salts and other con-
tamination can work on the base metal. Breakage of one of these components results
in costly repairs, downtime and nonavailability of a weapons system, and perhaps loss
of life or injury to the crew.
In view of the preceding, the followi ng r equirements for deicing compounds are
desirable: (a) ability to melt ice quickly at tempe r a ture s to -40 F; (b) noncorrosive
to aircraft materials; (c) no ingestion haza rd to aircraft gas turbines; (d) nonlubri-
cating on the runway; (e) minimum deteriorating effect on the pavements; (f) easy dis-
persal using conventional equipment; and (g) economical usage. These requirements
eliminate the wholesale use of abrasives and the use of liquid deicing materials such
as the glycols. Ideally, the material should be solid, free flowing, and granulated.
The only material which presently meets most of these requirements is urea, but it
is ineffective below 12 F.
Because the use of the ideal deicing material would be restricted to runways and
taxiways, and then only for control of patch ice in most instances , it is not absolutely
essential that this product compare in price with rock salt (NaCl). A higher cost ma-
terial, within reason, could be justified on the basis of increased safety and reduced
maintenance costs.
The Air Force Materials Laboratory has never pursued a development program for
such a material; however, over the past several years a number of commercially
 21

available materials have been evaluated, including sodium chloride (NaCl), calcium
chloride (CaCb), ammonium sulfate, urea, and urea-formamide-acetamide mixtures.
Various proprietary corrosion inhibitors were studied; however, all were variations
of the first three materials and caused severe pitting, general corrosion and stress
cracking of aluminum, magnesium and steel. As a general class, the inorganic chemi-
cals examined are all similar in this regard, differing mainly in degree. The two
organic materials are relatively noncorrosive but have limited utility. Urea has a
relatively high slush point (about +12 F) and the mixture is more of a paste than a free-
flowing solid.

EVALUATION PROCEDURES AND DATA

As a quick and easy method of determining slush points, a saturated solution (room
temperature) of each material in water is cooled in a dry-ice-in-solvent bath with con-
stant stirring and the temperature of the solution is recorded at the point where slush
forms.
A semiquantitative measurement of the ability of several materials (CaClz as the
dihydrate, NaCl, urea and the urea-formamide-acetamide mixture) to melt ice or to
make it slush was also conducted.
The tests were made by measurin~ how far a penetrometer rod with a %-in. ball at
the end would penetrate about 8 mm ( i'l6 in.) of ice. The rod was loaded to 1 lb. The
materials, generally applied at a rate of '14 psf but with some at % psf, were tested
until failure at 15, 0, -10, -30, and -50 F.

Summary
1. Only CaCb was effective at all test temperatures, and was the only one of prac-
tical value below 0 F. At higher temperatures, it was more effective than the others
because of quicker action.
2. NaCl is quite useful at 15 F, but heavy application is required to melt an appreci-
able amount of ice at 0 F. It is useless at -10 F.
3. The penetrometer sank Ya in. into the ice at 15 Fin 1 hr when the amide mixture
was applied at '14 psf, but only one-fourth as far at 0 F. Doubling the application rate
produced a negligible increase at 0 F.
4. Urea was about as good as the mixed amides at 15 F, but had no effect at 0 F.
5. Under the test conditions, no slush was formed in any of the trials. The ma-
terials dissolved to whatever extent they would to form solutions, under which was
hard ice.

Static Corrosion Tests

Conventional static corrosion testing on a number of metals and alloys was also
conducted by immersing small coupons in a water solution of the deicing chemical,
observing weight changes, discoloration, and pitting. The following results were ob-
tained:
1. Uninhibited chlorides will etch and pit aluminum and magnesium alloys and cause
general rusting of low-alloy steels.
2. Ammonium sulfate-type materials are very severe on magnesium, in some
cases causing complete disintegration.
3. Some inhibited chloride solutions showed very little effect on aluminum, mag-
nesium and steel on these unstressed specimens. This is not the case for metals
under stress.
4. Urea has little or no effect on aluminum or steel. It is comparable to the blank
water controls and, in fact, somewhat inhibits the general rusting of steel. Urea and
other amides will cause some corrosion on copper alloys.

STRESS CORROSION EVALUATION PROCEDURES AND DATA

To establish the effect of these deicing chemicals on aircraft structural materials
under stress, another series of corrosion tests were conducted. The first series of
 ..

22

.-· ·

•
Figure 1. Test specimen, fixture and strai n gage instrlliilents used for loading specimen .

tests were conducted using metal specimens already available. The deicers used were
NaCl, CaCh and urea.

2014 Aluminum Alloy

.- -.
Procedure. -2014-T6 aluminum alloy machined specimens cut from the longitudinal
direction were used. The specimen, its fixture, a jig vise used for applying stress to
the specimen fixture and strain gage instruments are shown in Figure 1. Each speci-
men was loaded to 80 percent of yield strength, determined by averaging data from
three stress-strain curves for each specimen. After loading, each specimen and fix-
·. ture was completely painted with stop-off lacquer except for the gage length of the
specimen. Salt solution concentrations were arbitrarily selected at saturation for
32 F.
·..... . The stress corrosion test was conducted at room temperature, which varied between
.· 68 and 78 F. The specimens were alternately immersed in nitrogen gas-agitated solu-
tions for 10 min, then air-dried for 20 min. The specimens were removed, washed
., with distilled water, and dried at the end of each day because observations were made
on the day shift only. After 230 cycles, or 115 hr of testing, some of the specimens
were removed from their fixtures and pulled in the tensile testing machine.
Results. -Specimens ex-
posed to saturated NaCl
solutions showed pitting af-
TABLE 1
ter only 20 hr of testing
RESULTS OF STRESS CORROSION TESTS ON 2014 ALUMINUM ALLOYS
(Table 1). Specimens in
Ultimate Yield
Specime n Salt Temperature Strength Str e ngth Elongation Pitting Initiated the saturated urea solution
Numbe r Sol. (o C)
(psi) (psi)
(%) After (hr) did not show any general
a corrosion before 100 hr of
2014T-02 82, 500 62, 400 16. 0
.· 2014T-04
2014T-13
84, 100
82, 100
65, 200
62, 400 16. 0
_a
_a
testing. Whereas general
corrosion was well advanced
2014T-14 85, 600 64, 700 16. 0 _a
2014T-03 NaCl 21-26. 5 82, 200 64, 600 9. 3 20 on the NaCl specimens, there
2014T-05 NaCl 21. 5-2 0 81, 000 63, 200 9. 3 20 was no visible evidence of
2014T-06 NaCl 21. 5-26. 5 80, 900 64, 300 9. 3 20
2014T-07 Caci , 21- 26. 5 25 stress corrosion cracking
2014T-0 8 Ca Cl, 22-27. 5 82, 900 64, 900 9. 3 25 at the time they were checked
2014T-09 Ca CJ, 19-24. 5 25
2014T-10 Urea 21. 5-2 6. 5 100 for physical properties by
2014T-11 Urea 21. 5-26. 5 81, 900 62, 800 11. 0 100 tensile testing. The ductility
20 14T -12 Urea 19. 5-26 100
of all exposed specimens was
aunexposed control specimen. reduced by about the same
Figure 2 . Spec;J.:men corroded by exposure to NaCl solution and pulJ.ed .

•.

Figure 3. Specimen corroded by exposure to CaClg and pulled .

Figure 4. Specimen corroded by exposure to u.rea. solution and pulled.

 24

a mount as indicated by the elongation data. A distinctive corrosion pattern was pro-
duced by each type of salt solution. A comparison of these surfaces shows that the
specimen exposed to NaCl (Fig. 2) was appreciably more corroded than the specimens
exposed to e ither CaClz (Fig. 3) or urea (Fig. 4) solutions.
.. General corrosion was most severe with NaCl and least severe with urea. Whereas
there was no visible evidence of stress corrosion cracking, all corrosion tested speci-
. .. . mens tested for tensile strength showed increased brittleness over the unexposed speci-
mens pulled for determining the yield strength. The lack of stress corrosion cracking
was attributed to the use of specimens cut from the longitudinal direction, which is the
least susceptible to this type of cracking. Because aircraft structural components are
also stressed in the transverse direction, all subsequent test specimens were prepared
with that in mind.

7079-T6 High Strength Aluminum Alloy

A second serie s of tests was conducted using specimens cut from the long transverse
dire ction (Fig. 5) of a forged billet of 7079 aluminum in the T-6 condition (i.e., solu-
tion heat-treated and artificially aged). As in the initial test series, the aluminum test
specimens were preloaded to 80 percent of their yield strength and exposed at room
temperature under alternate immersion in solutions (saturated at 32 F) of NaCl, CaCb,
urea and an amide mixture . The tests were conducted on a 24-hr day, 5-day week
basis.

--

---- - Sow cuts

X Sec t ions discorded

End slice discarded

SLICE I SLICE 2
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L-------
-- - - --~~.,
---_ l. 1. __
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1J.9~
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- - -_ -__ ILB_ .JJ
1_~A- --- _ _ ___ ~~-1 __1 g_A _ _ _ _ _ _ 1_ _ _ _ _ _ 12.L!
1
:-'lA.. - - - - - - - - '- - - - - - - ~ 8_,.. H~ ------~-----v~~
1_SJ>.._ - - - - - - _t
_6_A_______
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.J _____ _ LB_ _
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__ -_ -_ -_ -_ --}- -__
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U _ -- _ -_ _- ___
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:-:-:-- -- ----+------ -U-i 18 A I 18 8 I

Figure 5. Location of' tensil e b l anks cut in long transverse direction from 7079- T6
aluminum forging .
 25

Procedure. -A 51/4 - by 7- by 30 %-in. forged billet of 7079-T6 aluminum alloy was

procured. The physical properties of this forging surpassed minimum requirements
of AMS 4138, which specified a minimum tensile strength of 70, 000 psi and a yield
strength of 60, 000 psi with a 6 percent elongation in the long transverse direction.
Tensile specimen blanks were cut from the long transverse direction of this forging,
as shown in Figure 5. A %-in. slice was cut from the end of the forging and discarded.
Because specimens cut from end slices often exhibit erratic effects due to unusual end
grains produced during forging, the next two %-in. slices were sawed into specimen
blanks located as shown. Blanks 9 and 18 proved undersized and were discarded. All
remaining specimen blanks were then machined to ASTM Standard (E8-57T) small-size
specimen dimensions. The gage length sections of each specimen were carefully pol-
ished with No. 600 metallographic paper.
The machined specimens were then cleaned with acetone and two strain gages were
cemented, using Armstrong Cement A-2, 180° apart on the gage lengths of each speci-
men. The specimens were then mounted in jigs and loaded to the proper stress level.
Once the loaded specimens were stabilized, the strain gages were removed. The jig
and everything except the test gage section of the specimens were coated with stop-off
lacquer. Following this, the jigs were mounted in the apparatus (Fig. 6) which pro-
vided alternate immersion in the test solutions and air-drying of the specimens.
Room-temperature solutions of NaCl, CaCh, urea and the amide mixture were used
as the corrosive media. Solutions were prepared by dissolving the following quantities
of each ice melting material in 2 liters of distilled water: NaCl (technical grade) 700
gm; CaCb (technical grade), 1, 180 gm; urea (technical grade), 1, 560 gm; and mixed

Figure 6. Apparatus for alternate immersion of specimen in ice melting solutions and
suspending in air.
 26
:
TABLE 2 TABLE 3
RESULTS OF TENSILE TESTS ON TIMES-TO-FAILURE OF 7079-T6 ALUMINUM
7079-T6 ALUMINUM ALLOY SPECIMENS SUBJECTED TO CYCLIC
STRESS CORROSIO~
Tensile Yield
Specimen Strength Strength Elongation (%) Time-to-Failure
Salt Sol. Specimen
(psi) (psi) (hr)
... .
lA 74, 700 64, 400 7 Ca Ch 13B 82
4A 74, 100 63' 700 9. 4 15A 220
8B 73, 700 63, 900 7 5B 318
llB 74, 900 63, 700 8 2B 493
14B 73, 400 63, 500 7 Average 333
Avg. 74, 200 63, 800 8 NaCl 5A 138
13A 238
2A 588
Average 321
Mixed Amides 17B 536
6A 543
amides, 1, 180 gm. The quantities of ice 4B 933b
melting material used for each 2 liters of Average (pseudo) 572b
Urea 14A 355
water were based on the approximate solu- 3A 933b
bility of each material at 32 F, an ap- llA 938b
933b
12A
proximation of the condition encountered Average (pseudo) 792
on runways. Distilled water was usedfor aln saturated solutions at 32 F of ice melting salts.
the preparation of each solution because bTest halted before specimen failure to start new
it was felt that distilled, rather than tap, series of stress corrosion tests.
water would more closely simulate melted
snow or ice found on runways. To mini-
mize stratification of the test salt solu-
tions, each beaker contained a fritted glass plate bottom, and a small amount of nitro-
gen was bubbled continuously through the solution during the test period.
The stress corrosion tests consisted of intermittent immersion (10 min) in the salt
solution followed by an air-drying period of 20 min. These cycles were repeated until
the specimen failed by breaking. The specimen was then washed in distilled water and
subjected to visual and microscopic examination of the fractured and exposed lateral
surfaces.
Results. -Table 2 gives the results of tensile tests on five specimens run for the
purpose of determining the average yield strength (0. 2 percent offset) of specimens
cut from the two slices shown in Figure 5. Both the tensile and yield strengths of the
test specimens were greater than the minimum required by AMS 4138 specification.
On the basis of the average yield strength given in Table 2, a preload stress of 51, 000
psi (80 percent of the average yield strength) was applied to each test specimen ex-
posed to the ice melting solutions.
Table 3 compares the time-to-failure for the 7079-T6 aluminum alloy specimens
tested in the four ice melting solutions. These results show that CaCh and NaCl have
equally deleterious effects on the life of 7079-T6 aluminum alloy. For example, the
average time-to-failure for specimens exposed to CaCh and NaCl solution was 333
and 321 hr, respectively. This is less than one-half the pseudo average life (672+ hr)
of specimens exposed to solutions of the mixed amide ice melting material, and even
less than the pseudo average life (792+ hr) of specimens exposed to solutions of urea.
The term "pseudo average life" is used here since the life of several specimens in-
cluded in the averages given in Table 3 were undetermined (no failure). Several of
the specimens exposed to the latter two solutions had not failed in 938 hr, the time at
which the test was halted to permit starting a new test series. The actual average
time-to-failure for a specimen exposed to the urea and mixed amide ice melting ma-
terials has not yet been determined.
* ·.
Figures 7 and 8 are photomicrographs (60X) representative of the 7079-T6 forging
from which all specimens were cut. Figure 7 shows a view of the gross grain structure
of the billet parallel to the long axis of forging. The grains, while not well defined,
appear to be generally greater than 0. 075 in. long. Even at this low magnification
their length is greater than the field shown. Such grain size is considered typical for
the alloy in a T-6 condition. Figure 8, taken perpendicular to the long axis of the
7079 forging, shows the distribution and size of the grains in Figure 7 from an end
 27

Figure 7 . Photomicrograph of tY]Jical structure(parallel to long axis)of forged 7079-T6

billet (6ox)-Keller's etch.

Figure 8. Photomicrograph of tY]Jical structure (perpendicular to long axis) of forged

7079-T6 billet (6oX)-Keller' s etch.
 28

on view. More importantly, it shows the distribution, size and number of intermetal-
lic constituents and inclusions found in the test specimens.
CaCh Solution. -The surface of all specimens exposed to this solution appeared
dull or matte after the first 50 hr of cyclic exposure. Extensive surface pitting was
noted on the specimen that failed at 82 hr. As the life of the specimen exposed to this
. ~ .. solution increased, surface pitting was deeper and somewhat more extensive. Pitting
seemed to take place intergranularly and also at the site of the larger inclusions. The
test specimens showed no evidence of cone-cup or ductile failures. Failure was judged
to result from an increase in stress resulting from a decrease in the area of the speci-
men as pitting depth and area of pitting attack increased. The presence of numerous
inclusions in an alloy of this type offers sites for initiation of pitting-type corrosion.
Figure 9 is a photomicrograph of specimen 5B which failed after 318-hr exposure
to the test solution. The large pit shown here is 0. 014 in. deep by 0. 008 in. wide and
is located about % in. from the fracture zone. There appear to be numerous such pits
scattered over the test gage length. Several smaller pits may be seen in the surface
of the specimen in both directions from the large pit.
NaCl Solution. -The surface of test specimens exposed to this solution also ap-
peared dull or matte within the first 50 hr of testing. Extensive pitting over the gage
length surface occurred in all cases. Such pitting appeared to increase in severity
or depth of penetration with lengthening time of exposure to the solution. As with the
specimens tested in CaCh solution, all exhibited brittle-type failures.
Figure 10 is a photomicrograph at 60X of specimen 13A, which failed after cyclic
exposure of 238 hr in NaCl solution. This specimen appears different from that of
Figure 9, as it was etched with Keller's solution. The pit shown is about 0. 005 in.
."' .. . - deep by 0. 002 in. wide and was the only one found on the particular cross-section .
In general, substantially fewer pits were found in the general area of the pit shown.
In this series, surface pitting was less frequent and extensive on specimens exposed
to NaCl solutions than ones exposed to CaCh solutions .

. .,
,• .

Figure 9. Photomicrograph of unetched cross-sec tion of specimen 5B a fter cyclic

exposure under stress to CaC~ solution for 31 8 hr (6ox).
 29

Figure lO. Photomicrograph of cross-section of specimen l3A after cyclic exposure under
stress to NaCl solution for 238 hr (6ox)~HF etch.

I
J
I
t
'

Figure ll . Photomicrograph of specimen exposed for 536-hr cyclic tests in solution of

sample Dice melting product (6ox)~Keller's etch.
 .

30

Mixed Amide Material. -This solution showed less outward evidence of surface or
corrosion attack than any of the four solutions evaluated. The surface of each test
specimen exposed to this solution appeared as shiny and metallic at the end of more
than 900 hr of testing as it was at the start of the test. No sign of surface pitting was
found on any of the test specimens.
... Figure 11, a photomicrograph of specimen 17B which failed only after 536 hr of
testing, shows a complete absence of any surface pitting in the area illustrated. A
complete examinationof several cross-sections of this and other specimens did not
reveal a single area of attack by pitting. However, the specimen did fail in a brittle
manner, typical of all specimens tested in this program. The method of attack or
mode of failure is not understood as of this date.
Urea Solution. -There was considerable metallic lustre on the surface of specimens
exposed to urea solutions, even after 500-hr cyclic exposure to the test solution, but
the surfaces of these specimens were not as metallic in lustre as those e'i'::posed to the
mixed amide solution. As indicated in Figure 12, severe pitting of the specimen sur-
face occurred with the urea solution. Whereas the pitting attack was quite widespread
and rather homogenous with solutions of CaClz and NaCl, the urea solution seemed to
cause patches of more severe pitting. Deep pits in the surface were found. Despite
this, three out of four of the test specimens did not fail in 938 hr of exposure. Failure
of specimen 14A may have resulted when several surface pits became sufficiently
aligned to reduce the specimen cross-sectional area to a point where its ultimate
tensile strength was exceeded.
Discussion. -Notwithstanding the limited number of specimens exposed under stress

- conditions in solutions of various ice melting materials, there is little doubt that both
NaCl and CaCh are significantly more corrosive to 7079-T6 alloy than mixed amide
and urea ice melting materials. The severe general (surface dulling) and localized
(pitting) attack by solutions of the alkali halide ice melting salts was quite evident and
appreciably greater than experienced with either the mixed amide or the urea-type
ice melting materials.

•
• • .

.·
• I

.· '-t; \ \
' . \

...
.\
Figure 12. Photomicrograph of specimen exposed for 938+ hr cyclic tests in solution of
urea ice melting compound (6ox)~Keller's etch.
 31

Figure l3. Stress corrosion stands for testing steel specimens.

On the basis of test results, the average stress corrosion life of 7079-T6 exposed
to NaCl and CaCh solutions was less than one-half the pseudo average life of speci-
mens exposed to the solution of the urea ice melting material.

AISI 4340 High-Strength Steel

The next set of corrosion tests was to determine the effects of NaCl, CaCb and
urea on stressed high-strength steel parts. A program was set up to determine stress
corrosion susceptibility or failure vs time-to-failure by stressing the specimens to
80 percent of yield strength.
Apparatus. -Special stands (Fig. 13) were fabricated to provide the loadings to
stress specimens to the required level. Small glass containers with rubber ends con-
tained the salt solutions around the specimen. These containers were fed from a
reservoir system which alternately raised and lowered the solution according to a
predetermined cycle. This cycle, repeated until the specimen failed, consisted of
exposing the specimen to the salt solution for 10 min, draining the solution from around
the specimen and allowing it to air-dry for 20 min. Each test specimen was under
constant load for the duration of the test.
Procedure. -AISI 4340 alloy steel was selected because of its susceptibility to
stress corrosion cracking when heat-treated to high-strength levels. The specimen
blanks were cut from a steel forging in a
direction transverse to the length of the
forging. Location of the specimen within
the forging was recorded and each speci-
men was given a number so that at any
future time its location within the forging
could be determined. The blanks were
then rough machined into %-in. diam Figure l4. Modification of ASTM (E8-57T )
tensile test (Fig. 14) bars and heat- miniature test bar.
 ·.

32

treated to a tensile strength in the 260, 000 to 280, 000 psi range. This strength cor-
responds to a Rockwell hardness of Re 54. The hardness of each specimen was re-
corded before grinding the gage length. So that the stress corrosion tests could be
conducted at stress levels of approximately 80 percent of yield strength, it was neces-
sary to determine the actual tensile and yield strength of a number of specimens. As
.. .. all specimens were approximately of the same hardness, it was considered valid to
take the average value of the tested specimens as the approximate yield strength for
the specimens used in the stress corrosion test. Each stand was calibrated with a
strain gage load cell (Fig. 15) and the weights required to obtain the necessary load
for each test specimen were put in place. The load cell was then replaced by the test
specimen. A record was maintained for each stand to show room-temperature fluctua-
tion with time and the total time-to-failure.
Results. -Table 4 gives the stress corrosion data on the highly heat-treated 4340
alloy steel tested. Solutions of the following ice mel ting compounds were evaluated: (a)
NaCl, 700 gm in 2 liters of distilled water; (b) CaCb, 1, 180 gm in 2 liters of distilled
water; (c) urea, 1, 560 gm i n 2 lite rs of dis tilled water; and (d) tap water from Dayton
city water. Twelve Yrin. diam test specimens were failed in these tests. The aver-
age time-to-failure per specimen exposed to the CaCh solution was 4. 5 hr. This
compares with an average time-to-failure per specimen of 53. 5 hr for test bars ex-
posed to the NaCl solution, 237 hr for urea and 130 hr for tap water.
On the basis of visual examinations of the failed specimens, some ductility was
exhibited, evidenced by "shear lips" at the fractured surfaces (Figs. 16, 17, 18).
Discussion. -As regards corrosion, test data show a definite superiority for urea
ice melting compounds over NaCl and CaCb. Further, CaCh appears to have a more
s ever e effe c t on failure rate than cto·e·s NaCL It is felt tha:t the elativ~ severity ol
attack of CaCb vs NaCl is not in itself as
valid as the significant differences in
failures under stress corrosion conditions
between chloride compounds and urea.
Both CaCb and NaCl have a more pro-
nounced and detrimental effect on the life
of high-strength AISI 4340 alloy tested
than does urea. The apparent readiness
of this highly heat-treated alloy to fail
.· when loaded above 190, 000 psi and ex-
posed to corrosive ice melting materials
., should be recognized. It should be noted
that all of the data collected thus far have
been obtained using transverse grain speci-
mens. Specimens cut from the longitudinal
forging direction would most likely ex-
hibit greater resistance to stress corrosion
cracking.

TABLE 4
STRESS CORROSION OF A!Sl 4340 STEEL

Time-to-Failure
Corrosive Media Specimen (hr)

CaC!, sol. 41 6. 25
93 3. 50
11 3. 75
NaCl sol. 27 67. 50
. ·. 120
69
40. 50
53. 50

.. . Urea sol.

Tap water
121
101
92
17
9 2. 00
277 . 5
342. 0
102. 00
28 148. 00
126 140 . 00
Figure l5. Strain gage load cell.
 33

Figure 16. End-on and lateral view of fractured test bars subjected to stress in CaC~
solution, for less than 5 hr.

Figure 17. End-on and lateral view of fractured test bars subjected to stress in
solution of Dayton tap water, exposed for over 100 hr.
 34

Figure l8. End-on and lateral view of fractured test bars subjected to stress in
solution of urea, exposed for over 250 hr.

Since the t"<Jinpletion of the l'a1·ticulai· work rep·o1•ted here, the Federal ·Avration
Authority has sponsored a program for the development of an effective noncorrosive
deicing material for aircraft runways. The contract for this work was awarded to the
Monsanto Chemical ·,Corp. and they are presently conducting a systematic screening of
candidate deicing materials based on requirements similar to those listed previously
in this paper. It is still too early in the program to predict what success might be
achieved; however, both the FAA and the USAF are hoping to test the promising new
materials in service next winter.

REFERENCES
.· 1. Conrardy, W. P., "A Review of USAF Service Problems Related to Materials-
Processes-Environments." Inst. Environ. Sci. Proc. (1963).
2. Conrardy, W. P., "Chemical Deicing of Aircraft Runways." Tech. Memo. ASRCE
TM-62-10.
3. "Runway Ice Control Using Crystal Urea." RCAF Central Exp. and Proving
Estab. Interim Rept. 1475 (May 1960).
4, "Deicing Materials for Military Runways." U. S. Naval Civil Eng. Res. and
Eval. Lab., Port Hueneme, Calif. Tech. Memo. M-124.
5. "Effects of De-Icing Chemicals on Structures: A Symposium." HRB Bull. 323
(1962).

Discussion
COMMITTEE ON SNOW AND ICE CONTROL, Highway Research Board. -The Committee
.. and the Department of Maintenance sponsored this paper because the test procedures and
findings it describes warranted presentation and publication. There is no disagree-
ment with the author's findings, but there is some concern that the report might be
misinterpreted. This discussion is presented to clarify the meaning of some of the
report's findings to highway organizations.
The study was limited to the behavior of highly stressed aluminum alloys and high-
tensile steels. Among other things, it discusses the susceptibility of aircraft metals
to stress corrosion caused by chloride compounds.
 35

Automobile steels, of course, are not subject to the high-stress conditions found in
airframe components. As a result, special corrosion problems encountered in clear-
ing runways have no pertinence to snow and ice removal on streets and highways. The
committee feels obliged to point out that highway officials should not use the report's
information on airframe corrosion as the basis for modifying their use of chlorides for
removing snow and ice from vehicular pavements. Those responsible for purchasing
deicing compounds should also note that costs quoted for urea and other compounds are
several times those given for either NaCl or CaCb.

W. P. CONRARDY, Closure. -No issue is taken with the preceding remarks. Appli-
cation must be the governing factor in the selection of deicing materials. In the case
of highway pavements, maximum effectiveness at lowest cost is the important cri-
terion. The paper attempted to point out that the low-strength materials used in ve-
hicles, bridges, etc., rarely if ever fail by catastrophic stress corrosion cracking.
In addition, because weight is not a factor, protective coatings may be extensively
used. Moreover, the enormous amount of deicing materials purchased for ice control
on United States highways is such that even fractional increases in deicing materials
costs represent an increase in operating cost that is difficult to justify.
On the other hand, aircraft are weight critical. Materials are at their maximum
strength level in many cases. This makes them prone to failure by stress corrosion.
This, of course, can and does result in lost lives and equipment. In addition, rela-
tively much smaller amounts of the more expensive materials would be used, thus
limiting the over-all increase in cost. This combination of factors does justify the
use of the more expensive material for airport runways.