Stress Corrosion of Silicate Glasses by Hydrogen Sulfide

Abstract

The crack velocity in fused silica and soda-lime silicate glass was determined at 17∼64°C in various H₂S gas environments from 0.1 to 1 Torr by means of the double torsion technique, in order to / clarify the mechanism of stress corrosion reaction between H₂S and stressed glass. The chemical reaction was found to be the first-order reaction similar to that between H₂O and stressed glass, although the reaction rate with H2S was much slower than that with H₂O. The activation energy of the reaction was 38 kcal/mol between H₂S and fused silica and 27kcal/mol between H₂S and soda-lime silicate glass. These values were higher than those with H₂O by several kcal, and this difference was attributed to the difference in size and polar ization between H2S and H20 molecules. However, the mechanism of stress corrosion of silicate glasses bx, H₂S was essentially the same as, that by H₂O.