Corrosion Behaviour of Nitronic Steel in Acidic Environment

Abstract

Nitronic steel exhibits an austenitic matrix with carbide precipitates along the grain boundaries. The nitronic steel also shows excellent ductility (nearly 2 times of the other stainless steel) which enhances their structural applications. In the view of the performance of nitrogen alloyed steel, the corrosion behaviour of the as-received nitronic steels wasstudied and compared its corrosion behaviour with the conventional stainless steels being used in chemical and hydropower industries. The corrosion study of the nitronic steel and conventional stainless steels was performed in different aqueous solutions (H2SO4 and NaCl). The results obtained from corrosion studies suggest the lower corrosion rate of nitronic steel as compared to the conventional stainless steels. The corroded surfaces were analyzed using an optical microscope and scanning electron microscope for the elemental analysis of corrosion products. Keywords: Nitronic steel; Corrosion; Stainless steel; Acidic solutions