Fasteners that are used in marine environments are likely to get corroded soon and therefore it is necessary to consider stainless steel materials only while selecting fasteners used in boats and ships.
In seaside areas, the possibility of corrosion is higher due to salt deposits that cannot be washed away either due to rain or through regular maintenance. Therefore, marine fasteners are always chosen very carefully.
Engineers recommend mostly stainless steel of A4 grade or 316 grade as the best alternative for marine application as it has a minimum of 2% molybdenum content.
Besides, this variety of stainless steel can offer higher strength as well as excellent fatigue properties. Since the level of vibration is going to be higher during the marine application, where this grade of stainless steel can be a highly preferred material.
Brass has also been identified by material experts as a good option for maritime applications because it also has strong corrosion resistance properties needed to withstand various environmental factors.
There are quite a few other metals that are suited for the manufacture and fabrication of maritime fasteners, such as brass and stainless steel.
According to statistics, the requirement for lightweight, high-performance fasteners is going to increase as marine vessel hull materials move toward lighter alternatives. The use of materials based on polymers could also accomplish this.
Polymers are also other materials that don’t corrode in saline water as many other metals do. However, some polymers can often struggle above sea level, whereas you might also anticipate a metal to get corroded in water.
This is due to the fact that some polymers frequently break down when they will be exposed to UV light.
However, plastics with UV resistance, such as polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), won’t deteriorate in the sun or going to become brittle in the long run with age and endanger the strength of the fastener.
There is of course much more to think about material selection, particularly for marine sectors than what first meets the eye, as now we have learned from this sector. In case your application calls for some different materials, then check whether would your fasteners be suitable for use both above as well as below sea level.
A few other types of materials that can also be considered are as follows:
- Copper
- Brass CZ121, Naval Brass
- Silicon Bronze
- UNS C65500
- Phosphor Bronze
- Aluminum
- Aluminum Bronze CA104
- Aluminum Bronze C63000
- AISI 303
- AISI 304
- AISI 316
- 310 + 321 Stainless sheets of steel
- 904L (Uranus B6)
- Carpenter 20 (CB20)
- Carpenter MP 35N, EN26
Eliminating those materials that are not suitable for maritime conditions may appear to be some kind of test of your common sense, but engineers frequently discover that there are many other factors also to take into account when refining the “go-to” or conventional alternatives.
Engineers should use a certain trustworthy materials database to make material selections that are appropriate for the environment in their fasteners and all other components that will be used, whether it is to decrease cost or boost strength and reliability.