Corrosion and passivation behaviors of some stainless steel alloys in molten alkali carbonates

The corrosion and passivation behaviors of two types of stainless steel alloys (ferritic and austenitic steels) in ternary molten Li2CO3-Na2CO3-K2CO3 mixture at different temperatures (475-550 degreesC) were studied using galvanostatic polarization and cyclic voltammetry. The galvanostatic polarization curves of the investigated alloys illustrate the passivation and passivity breakdown of the alloys. The passivation potential range for the three investigated steel alloys is about 1.15-1.3 V. During this potential range different oxide and spinels are formed, the nature of which depends on the type of alloy and the anodization potential. At high anodic potentials the decomposition of carbonate takes place, leading to passivity breakdown and oxygen evolution. The values of corrosion parameters (R-p, i(o) and i(corr)) were calculated. The calculated values indicate that the corrosion resistance of the austenitic stainless steel is higher than that of the ferritic steel. The activation energy of the corrosion process was found to be equal to about 70 kJ mol(-1). The results of the cyclic voltammetric investigations indicate that the behavior of the austenitic steels is about the same and differs from that of ferritic steel. The corrosion tests in 0.2 M HCl solutions have shown that the oxide scales formed on the surface of the austenitic stainless steels are multilayered, whereas those formed on the ferritic alloy are uniform. (C) 2002 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.