Corrosion and Erosion-Corrosion Processes of Metal-Matrix Composites in Slurry Conditions

The corrosion and erosion-corrosion (EC) processes of four metal-matrix composites (MMCs) in a simulated cooling water environment have been assessed in this article. The MMCs consisted of two Ni-base and two Fe-base matrices alloyed with different concentrations of chromium, molybdenum, boron, silicon, and carbon; the matrices were reinforced with tungsten carbide (WC) particles. The corrosion behavior has been investigated using a combination of potentiostatic polarization and post-tests surface analysis. The EC processes were studied by in situ electrochemical techniques measuring the current density and corrosion potential response at different slurry temperatures and sand content. At static conditions it was found that as the temperature increased, there was a transition from a homogeneous corrosion of the matrix to an interfacial corrosion mechanism. The Ni-base MMCs showed a better corrosion resistance and interestingly a highly alloyed matrix did not significantly improved MMC’s corrosion resistance. In the in situ EC tests, the Fe-base MMCs showed a constant increase in the current density at all sand contents. Whereas, significant changes were not observed in the Ni-base MMCs below 0.5 g/L. Although sand content had an effect on the monitored current density (the current increased as the sand content increased) this effect was less pronounced above 3 g/L.