Material applications for navy machinery systems

Ships of the Navy operate in one of the most hostile and aggressive natural environments known to man - the seas and their surroundings. The two major considerations which influence the selection of materials for the fabrication of ship systems and components are: 1) the specific operating environment and 2) application related factors. Environment/application dependencies are particularly significant in the selection of materials for piping and machinery systems. Components in these systems must possess inherent resistance to corrosion, fouling and other forms of deterioration, since it is impractical to apply coatings or cathodic protection to the internal surfaces. The rationale for material selection criteria is illustrated by analyzing several selected machinery components in terms of specific operating environment and application related factors.