Environment-Induced Crack Initiation and Early Stages of Crack Growth in Aluminum Alloys

Our comprehensive historical review of the environment-induced cracking (EIC) of aluminum alloys over the last 80 years revealed that minimal attention has been focused on the initiation and early stages of crack development both for test samples and more importantly for aerospace structures constructed from AA7xxx alloys during either material development or during field exposure in service. This realization led us to develop a themed issue consisting of a series of “state-of-the-art” contributions by invited researchers. These articles, presented as sections in two issues of CORROSION in 2023, provide a well-informed overview, together with a critical assessment of the current understanding of EIC initiation and early stages of crack growth in aluminum alloys.