Localized corrosion properties of low interstitial ferritic,high purity austenitic and high chromium duplex stainless steels

Within the framework of a research aimed at characterizing the behaviour of new materials to pitting and crevice corrosion, an investigation has been made, using electrochemical techniques, of the following materials: ELI ferritic stainless steels (18 Cr-2 Mo-Ti; 21 Cr-3 Mo-Ti; 26 Cr-1 Mo); high chromium duplex stainless steel (Z 5 CNDU 21-08) and high chromium-nickel austenitic stainless steel (Z 2 CNDU 25-20); commercial austenitic stainless steels (AISI 304 L and 316 L) and laboratory heats of austenitic stainless steels with low contents of interstitials (LTM/18 Cr- 12 Ni, LTM/16 Cr- 14 Ni-2 Mo). It was possible to graduate a scale of resistance to pitting and crevice corrosion in neutral chloride solutions at 40 C; in particular the two experimental austenitic stainless steels LTM/18 Cr- 12 Ni and LTM/16 Cr- 14 Ni-2 Mo are at the same level as the AISI 316 L and 18 Cr-2 Mo-Ti, respectively. An occluded cell was developed and used for determining the critical potential for crevice corrosion (E_{localized corrosion}). For the steels under investigation E_{localized corrosion} is less noble than E_pitting especially for ELI ferritic 18 Cr-2 Mo-Ti and 21 Cr–3 Mo-Ti.     

Pitting Potential of stainless steels in artificial sweat

The pitting potentials of 12/12, 316 PX, AISI 303, 304, 316F and 316L austenitic stainless steels were determined in artificial sweat (perspiration) at room temperature. Two compositions of sweat were used: the BAM composition which contains two malodorous organic acids and the composition proposed in an ISO standard which does not contain them. The quasi-potentiostatic method (10 mV potential steps per min), potentiodynamic technique (1 V/min linear sweep) and scratch test were used on mechanically polished and HNO₃-passivated surfaces. The aggressivity of the two artificial sweats with respect to stainless steels was found to be practically the same. The pitting potentials and the classification of the stainless steels according to their pitting potential values were found to depend on the surface preparation and, to a lesser extent, on the test method. The experimental techniques were often complementary and a combination of two or three methods in conjunction may increase the confidence with which the conclusions can be applied. The lowest pitting corrosion resistance was found for AISI 303 and the highest for AISI 316L. As expected stainless steels with the lowest concentration of nonmetallic inclusions (sulfides and oxides) exhibited the best pitting corrosion resistance.     

Electrochemical prediction of corrosion behaviour of stainless steels in chloride-containing water

The pitting and crevice corrosion behaviour of stainless steels as a function of temperature and salinity (chlorides) of industrial waters has been considered in connection with environmental modification occurring because of the attack propagation. The actual meaning and the practical importance of the protection potential are examined and conclusions are drawn taking into account both the potential and non-potential dependent initiation and growth of corrosion phenomena. In this concern, the theoretical background and practical conditions for localized corrosion prevention by cathodic-anodic protection are discussed. Experimental stability diagrams of four stainless steel grades (AISI 304, 316, 430 and 410) at 22, 44 and 64°C are obtained and expressed in terms of electrode potential vs NaCl content in water.     

节镍型不锈钢的耐腐蚀性能比较

通过3.5%NaCl溶液中动电位极化曲线测定和中性盐雾试验,对200系列奥氏体不锈钢和400系列铁素体不锈钢两类节镍型不锈钢与304不锈钢的耐腐蚀性能进行了对比研究。结果显示,400系列铁素体不锈钢的耐点蚀性能优于200系列奥氏体不锈钢,两种节镍型不锈钢的耐点蚀性能均不如304不锈钢好;200系列奥氏体不锈钢的耐均匀腐蚀性能最差,443不锈钢耐均匀腐蚀性能与304不锈钢相当,439不锈钢比304不锈钢耐均匀腐蚀性能稍差。201、202、304、439和443不锈钢在3.5%NaCl溶液中的点蚀电位分别为(vs.SCE)-32 mV、-22 mV、312mV、165 mV和227 mV,腐蚀速率分别为0.0071 mm/a、0.0062 mm/a、0.0026 mm/a、0.0038 mm/a和0.0024mm/a。     

Corrosion behaviour of carbon S-phase created on Ni-free biomedical stainless steel

Following the success of forming a carbon S-phase (expanded austenite) surface layer on medical grade Ni-free austenitic stainless steel by DC plasma carburising, the established commercial carburising process Kolsterising® was performed on both Ni-containing (AISI 304) and Ni-free austenitic stainless steels. While the Ni-containing stainless steel responded very well to Kolsterising®, the Ni-free alloy did not. The carbon absorption and the hardness of the Kolsterised® Ni-free alloy are inferior to Kolsterised® AISI 304 Ni-containing stainless steel, however, the hardness of the untreated Ni-free alloy was doubled by Kolsterising®. The response of both Kolsterised® Ni-free and Ni-containing alloys to pitting, crevice corrosion and intergranular corrosion resistance was similar. From this work it can be concluded that the Kolsterised® austenitic stainless steels do not suffer from intergranular corrosion but are susceptible to intragranular pitting when tested in boiling sulphuric acid and copper sulphate solution. It was also observed that Kolsterising® improves significantly the pitting and crevice corrosion resistance of the alloys used in this study.     

Investigations on the Corrosion Behaviour and Structural Characteristics of Low Temperature Nitrided and Carburised Austenitic Stainless Steel

The wear resistance of austenitic stainless steels can be improved by thermo-chemical surface treatment with nitrogen and carbon. However, it is possible that the corrosion resistance will be impaired by the precipitation of chromiumnitrid or -carbide. The present contribution deals with investigations of the corrosion behaviour and structural characteristics of a low temperature nitrided and carburised austenitic stainless steel.The material investigated was AISI 316L (X2CrNiMol7-12-2) austenitic stainless steel. A commercial plasma-nitriding unit (pulsed dc) was used for the nitriding and carburising process. Additional samples were treated by the gasoxinitriding process for a comparison between plasma- and gasoxinitriding. The nitrided and carburised layer of austenitic stainless steel consists of the nitrogen or carbon S-phase (expanded austenite), respectively. X-ray diffraction investigations show the typical shift of the peaks to lower angles, indicating expansion of the fcc lattice. Also the X-ray diffraction technique was employed to study the residual stresses in the nitrogen and carbon S-phase. The corrosion behaviour of surface engineered samples was investigated with electrochemical methods. Anodic potentiodynamic polarisation curves were recorded for testing the resistance against general corrosion (in H2SO4) and pitting corrosion (in NaCl).     

Numerical simulations study of the localized corrosion resistance of AISI 316L stainless steel and pure titanium in a simulated body fluid environment

The resistance of both AISI 316L stainless steel (AISI 316L SS) and commercially pure titanium (cpTi) to localized corrosion in a simulated body fluid solution was investigated using numerical simulations. The resulting model, based on transport equations in dilute solutions, is designed to predict the susceptibility of these two biomaterials to crevice corrosion initiation. The results show that cpTi and AISI 316L SS alloy are very resistant to the initiation of crevice corrosion in 0.9% NaCl solution and AISI 316L SS alloy is more susceptible to corrosion initiation over the long term than cpTi.     

Pitting and crevice corrosion of superaustenitic stainless steels

Superaustenites are mainly used in offshore applications, oil production and chemical industry. Most important types of localised corrosion of these steels are pitting and crevice corrosion. Investigated materials were N08028, S31254 and three modified alloys. Chromium content of investigated alloys varied between 20 and 27%, molybdenum between 3.2 and 6.0%, nitrogen between 0.1 and 0.36% and copper between 0 and 1.1%. For means of comparison stainless steel AISI 316L has been included in the study. Pitting and crevice corrosion of these highly corrosion resistant steels has been investigated by use of standardized tests. Critical pitting temperature and critical crevice temperatures were determined according to ASTM G 48, Methods C and D, respectively. Electrochemical measurements for determination of pitting potentials were done according to ASTM G 61 as well as for determination of critical pitting temperatures according to ASTM G 150. Results are presented as function of MARC (Measure of alloying for resistance to corrosion) defined by Speidel since linear correlation coefficients were higher when compared to conventional PREN. Results obtained by different testing methods must not be compared directly. Every test however is sensitive to microstructural defects like precipitations and segregations that decrease corrosion resistance. The higher alloyed a material is, the higher is its tendency to form microstructural defects, and the more difficult is it to reach its theoretical corrosion resistance at given chemical composition.     

Corrosion resistance properties of glow-discharge nitrided AISI 316L austenitic stainless steel in NaCl solutions

Glow-discharge nitriding treatments can modify the hardness and the corrosion resistance properties of austenitic stainless steels. The modified layer characteristics mainly depend on the treatment temperature. In the present paper the results relative to glow-discharge nitriding treatments carried out on AISI 316L austenitic stainless steel samples at temperatures ranging from 673 to 773 K are reported. Treated and untreated samples were characterized by means of microstructural and morphological analysis, surface microhardness measurements and corrosion tests in NaCl solutions. The electrochemical characterization was carried out by means of linear polarizations, free corrosion potential-time curves and prolonged crevice corrosion tests. Nitriding treatments performed at higher temperatures (>723 K) can largely increase the surface hardness of AISI 316L stainless steel samples, but decrease the corrosion resistance properties due to the CrN precipitation. Nevertheless nitriding treatments performed at lower temperatures (?723 K) avoid a large CrN precipitation and allow to produce modified layers essentially composed by a nitrogen super-saturated austenitic metastable phase (S-phase) that shows high hardness and very high pitting and crevice corrosion resistance; at the same polarization potentials the anodic current density values are reduced up to three orders of magnitude in comparison with untreated samples and no crevice corrosion event can be detected after 60 days of immersion in 10% NaCl solution at 328 K.     

Corrosion properties of active screen plasma nitrided 316 austenitic stainless steel

AISI 316 austenitic stainless steel has been plasma nitrided using the active screen plasma nitriding (ASPN) technique. Corrosion properties of the untreated and AS plasma nitrided 316 steel have been evaluated using various techniques, including qualitative evaluation after etching in 50%HCl + 25%HNO₃ + 25%H₂O, weight loss measurement after immersion in 10% HCl, and anodic polarisation tests in 3.5% NaCl solution. The results showed that the untreated 316 stainless steel suffered severe localised pitting and crevice corrosion under the testing conditions. AS plasma nitriding at low temperature (420 °C) produced a single phase nitrided layer of nitrogen expanded austenite (S-phase), which considerably improved the corrosion properties of the 316 austenitic stainless steel. In contrast, AS plasma nitriding at a high temperature (500 °C) resulted in chromium nitride precipitation so that the bulk of the nitrided case had very poor corrosion resistance. However, a thin deposition layer on top of the nitrided case, which seems to be unique to AS plasma nitriding, could have alleviated the corrosion attack of the higher temperature nitrided 316 steel.     

Pitting corrosion of welded joints of austenitic stainless steels studied by using an electrochemical minicell

A pitting corrosion study of welded joints of austenitic stainless steels (AISI 304 and 316L) has been addressed. A specific small-scale electrochemical cell (minicell) has been used. Four different weldment zones have been studied. The electrochemical methods applied were the potentiodynamic anodic polarization test and cyclic potentiodynamic polarization measurements. These techniques showed that the HAZ was the most critical zone for pitting corrosion for both materials. The results were correlated to the microstructural features of the materials. Finally, a comparative study between minicell and lacquer coating techniques has been done. The results show that it is advisable to use the minicell device if reliable results are wanted.     

In vitro electrochemical investigations of advanced stainless steels for applications as orthopaedic implants

Potentiodynamic anodic polarization experiments on advanced stainless steels (SS), such as nitrogenbearing type 316L and 317L SS, were carried out in Hank’s solution (8 g NaCl, 0.14 g CaCl₂, 0.4 g KC1, 0.35 g NaHCO₃, 1 g glucose, 0.1 g NaH₂PO₄, 0.1 g MgCl₂, 0.06 g Na₂HPO₄ 2H₂O, 0.06 g MgSO₄ 7H₂O/1000 mL) in order to assess the pitting and crevice corrosion resistance. The results showed a significant improvement in the pitting and crevice corrosion resistance than the commonly used type 316L stainless steel implant material. The corrosion resistance was higher in austenitic stainless steels containing higher amounts of nitrogen. The pit-protection potential for nitrogen-bearing stainless steels was more noble than the corrosion potential indicating the higher repassivation tendency of actively growing pits in these alloys. The accelerated leaching study conducted for the above alloys showed very little tendency for leaching of metal ions, such as iron, chromium, and nickel, at different impressed potentials. This may be due to the enrichment of nitrogen and molybdenum at the passive film and metal interface, which could have impeded the releasing of metal ions through passive film.     

The chloride corrosion of austenitic stainless steels and of an inconel alloy in hot acidic media

Open circuit corrosion testing of austenitic stainless steels, AISI types 304, 310 and 316, and of an Inconel alloy in boiling 5% NaCl solution at pH 2.5 was carried out. The influences of aeration and the introduction of Cl₂ and/or H₂S were also examined. Cl₂ accelerated corrosion, pitting and crack formation whereas H₂S had an inhibiting effect on the corrosion rates and pitting but induced hydrogen attack, which appeared in the form of blisters on the surface specimen. H₂S in the absence of oxygen resulted in the growth of corrosion product on the specimen surface, instead of dissolution, but the cracking tendency also increased due to hydrogen penetration. Addition of trisodium phosphate to the corrosive solution markedly reduced pitting and lowered the corrosion rate by approximately half. Throughout the various tests it was found that the resistance of different alloys to hot chloride corrosion was in the order 310 > 316 > 304 > Inconel.     

The pitting resistance of AISI 316 stainless steel passivated in diluted nitric acid

The pitting resistance of AISI 316 stainless steel after passivation in diluted nitric acid was studied in comparison with that of non-passivated specimens. The passivation treatment increased the pitting potential but decreased the resistance to crevice corrosion under open circuit conditions in aerated sea water. Immersion in the nitric acid solution was found to remove the sulphide inclusions from the metal surface, thus eliminating the most susceptible sites for attack. In the absence of sulphide particles pitting nucleated at aluminium-rich oxides.     

Role of thiosulfate in susceptibility of AISI 316L austenitic stainless steels to pitting corrosion in 3.5% sodium chloride solutions

The susceptibility of AISI (American iron and steel institute) 316L austenitic stainless steel alloy to pitting corrosion was assessed in 3.5% chloride solutions containing various concentration of thiosulfate ions, a main sulfide oxidant product, spanning across values of 0.001, 0.005, 0.01, 0.05 and 0.1 M, at temperatures of 23, 50 and 80°C. The potentiodynamic scan results indicated that low thiosulfate concentrations promote the chloride attack and the aggressiveness of thiosulfate species depends on the chloride to thiosulfate ratio and the test temperature. Increasing temperature apparently promotes the ionic activity of Cl^– and S₂O₃^2– The thiosulfate to chloride ratio plays an essential role in pitting the intensity of the AISI 316L stainless steel alloy and was found to be dependent on the test temperature.     

氮、铌添加对304奥氏体不锈钢电化学腐蚀行为的影响

采用极化曲线和电化学动电位再活化技术（EPR）研究了不同含量氮（N）、铌（Nb）元素的添加对304奥氏体不锈钢的耐点蚀和耐晶间腐蚀性能的影响。结果表明：N元素的添加可以显著提高材料的耐点蚀性能,但对于晶间腐蚀性能的影响却有不同的机制。少量的N会降低材料的耐晶间腐蚀性能,但含量增加到0.2%时,却可以提高耐晶间腐蚀性能;Nb元素的添加会明显增加材料的耐晶间腐蚀性能,但会降低其耐点蚀性能。基于以上结果,确定了N和Nb添加的最佳含量,并给出上述微量元素改变材料耐腐蚀性能的作用机制。     

Localized Corrosion Characteristics of Nickel Alloys:A Review

There are a great variety of commercial nickel alloys mainly because nickel is able to dissolve a large amount of alloying elements while maintaining a single ductile austenitic phase.Nickel alloys are generally designed for and used in highly aggressive environments,for example,those where stainless steels may experience pitting corrosion or environmentally assisted cracking.While nickel alloys are generally resistant to pitting corrosion in chloride-containing environments,they may be prone to crevice corrosion attack.Addition of chromium,molybdenum and tungsten increases the localized corrosion resistance of nickel alloys.This review on the resistance to localized corrosion of nickel alloys includes specific environments such as those present in oil and gas upstream operations,in the chemical process industry and in seawater service.     

Localised Corrosion of Stainless Steels During Food Processing

Abstract

The austenitic stainless steels are widely used in the food industry as constructional materials for processing plant. One of their drawbacks is a susceptibility to localised attack, particularly in the presence of the chloride anion. The various forms of localised attack which stainless steels can suffer, including pitting, crevice attack, deposit attack, stress corrosion cracking and corrosion fatigue, are illustrated with case histories drawn from the food processing industry.     

Application limits and sensitisation behaviour of the manganese- and nitrogen-alloyed austenitic stainless steel P2000 (X13CrMnMoN18-14-3)

Nickel-free high-nitrogen-alloyed stainless steels like the P2000 (X13CrMnMoN18-14-3) were developed to enhance the strength and corrosion resistance of austenitic stainless steels like 304 and 316 while keeping the typical high ductility. The mechanical and corrosive properties of P2000 were investigated and compared with 304 and 316 to highlight the application opportunities of this new alloy. The microstructure of the solution-annealed condition was characterised by electron backscatter diffraction and the mechanical properties were studied by uniaxial tensile tests, Charpy impact tests and hardness measurements. The passivation behaviour was analysed using the electrochemical potentiodynamic reactivation, whereas the pitting corrosion resistance was compared by pitting potentials and pitting temperatures. However, secondary thermal influences or suboptimal heat treatment can impair the corrosion resistance due to the precipitation of secondary phases and the resulting sensitisation. Thermodynamic calculations and artificial ageing treatment in the range of 500–900°C for up to 100 h were used to determine critical time–temperature parameters for sensitisation. The microstructure of the various aged states was evaluated by scanning electron microscopy and compared with the degrading corrosion resistance characterised by the KorroPad method.     

Corrosion Testing of some Austenitic Stainless Steels and of Inconel Alloy at 25°c in Acidic Chloride Solutions

Abstract

The corrosion of austenitic stainless steels types AISI 304, 310 and 316, and of Inconel alloy, was studied at 25°c, in 5% NaCl solution at an initial pH value of 2·5, and in 5% FeCl³ at pH 1·2. The resistance of the alloys in both corrosive environments was in the order: 310 > 316 > 304 > Inconel. Pre-treatment of the specimens with bubbling chlorine gas increased the subsequent corrosion rates of the alloys. Intermittent bubbling of gas mixtures such as Cl₂, N₂, and/or H₂S, increased the corrosion rate of Inconel alloy when Cl₂ was present, but decreased the corrosion rate when H₂ was present. Heat treatment of austenitic stainless steels increased the subsequent corrosion rates, whereas 16% pre-straining of annealed specimens slightly reduced the rates. Addition of trisodium phosphate to the corrosive solution reduced the corrosion rates and pitting tendency for all three types of austenitic stainless steel.