Effect Of Small Amounts Of Elements On Shapes Of Potentiodynamic And Potentiostatic Curves Of Aisi 304l And Aisi 316l Stainless Steels In Chloride Media

Samples of high purity grade and commercial purity grade type AISI 304L and AISI 316L steels were studied by the potentiodynamic and potentiostatic techniques in a naturally aerated 3.5% NaCl aqueous solution at a controlled temperature of (23±2)°C. The anodic polarization curves of the potentiodynamic technique showed that not always is it possible to determine pitting potential: most of the curves of commercial purity grade steels displayed a smooth curvature in the region where the current density should increase sharply. The density current versus time potentiostatic curves also showed different shapes according to the purity grade steels: for the commercial purity grade steels, the current density showed large oscillations with time (related to unstable pits), whereas for the high purity grade steels, a regular behavior of current density as a function of time was found (related to stable pits).14210311

Influence of Microstructures on Polarization Resistance and Hydrogen-Induced Cracking of a Micro-Alloyed Steel Submitted to Different Cooling Rates

The effect of different microstructures on the polarization resistance (Rp) and the hydrogen-induced cracking (HIC) of a micro-alloyed steel austenitized and submitted to different cooling rates was studied. Samples 19.1 x 6 x 2 mm, containing the whole thickness of the plate were extracted from a 20 mm plate and heat treated on a quenching dilatometer, were submitted to Rp and HIC corrosion tests. Both Rp and HIC tests followed as close as possible ASTM G59 and NACE standard TM0284-2003, in this case, modified only with regard to the size of the samples. Steel samples transformed from austenite by a slow cooling (cooling rate of 0.5 degrees C.s(-1)) showed higher susceptibility to hydrogen-induced cracking, with large cracks in the middle of the sample propagating along segregation bands, corresponding to the centerline of the plate thickness. For cooling rates of 10 degrees C.s(-1), only small cracks were found in the matrix and micro cracks nucleated at non-metallic inclusions. For higher cooling rates (40 degrees C.s(-1)) very few small cracks were detected, linked to non-metallic inclusions. This result suggests that structures formed by polygonal structures and segregation bands (were cutectoid microconstituents predominate) have higher susceptibility to HIC. Structures predominantly formed by acicular ferrite make it difficult to propagate the cracks among non-oriented and interlaced acicular ferrite crystals. Smaller segregation bands containing eutectoid products also help inhibit cracking and crack propagation; segregation bands can function as pipelines for hydrogen diffusion and offer a path of stress concentration for the propagation of cracks, frequently associated to non-metallic inclusions. Polarization resistance essays performed on the steel in theas received condition, prior to any heat treatment, showed larger differences between the regions of the plate, with a considerably lower Rp in the centerline. The austenitization heat treatments followed by cooling rates of 0.5 e 10 degrees C.s(-1) made more uniform the corrosion resistance along the thickness of the plate. The effects of heat treatments on the corrosion resistance are probably related to the microconstituent formed, allied to the chemical homogenization of the impurities concentrated on the centerline of the plate