Corrosion Study of Base Material and Welds of a Ni-Cr-Mo-W Alloy

Alloys containing chromium （Cr） and molybdenum （Mo）, as the major alloying elements, are widely used in various industries where the material experiences corrosive environments. Chromium （Cr）, when added in an optimum amount, forms a Cr203 passive film which protects the underlying metal in aggressive solutions. Molybdenum （Mo） forms its oxides in the low pH solutions, thus, enhances the uniform corrosion resistance of an alloy in reducing acids and assists in inhibition to localized corrosion. Minor alloying elements, like tungsten （W） and copper （Cu）, also improve the overall corrosion resistance of an alloy in specific solutions. In the present study, corrosion resistance behavior of commercial iron- based alloys （316L SS, 254 SMO and 20Cb3） and nickel-based alloys （Mone1400, Alloy 625 and C-276） was studied in the acidic solutions. While the corrosion behavior of wrought alloys has been widely studied, there is little to no information on the corrosion performance of their welds, typically being the weak regions for corrosion initiation and propagation. Therefore, an attempt was undertaken to investigate the uniform and localized corrosion performance of base metal, simulated heat-affected zone and all-weld-metal samples of a Ni-Cr-Mo-W alloy, C-276. The study was conducted in aggressive acidic solutions. Various corrosion and surface analytical techniques were utilized to analyze the results.

Performance of Corrosion-Resistant Alloys in Concentrated Acids

Nickel alloys containing optimum amounts of chromium （Cr）, molybdenum （Mo） and tungsten （W） are widely used in the chemical processing industries due to their tolerance to both oxidizing and reducing conditions. Unlike stainless steel （SS）, Ni-Cr-Mo （W） alloys exhibit remarkably high uniform corrosion resistance in major concentrated acids, like hydrochloric acid （HC1） and sulfuric acid （H2SO4）. A higher uniform corrosion resistance of Ni-Cr-Mo （W） alloys, compared to other alloys, in concentrated acids can be attributed to the formation of protective oxide film of Mo and W in reducing acids, and Cr oxide film in oxidizing solutions. The localized corrosion resistance of Ni-Cr-Mo （W） alloys, containing high amount Cr as well as Mo （or Mo ＋ W）, is also significantly higher than that of other commercially available alloys. The present study investigates the role of alloying elements, in nickel alloys, to uniform corrosion resistance in concentrated acids （HC1, HC1 ＋ oxidizing impurities and H2SO4） and localized corrosion performance in chloride-rich environments using ASTM G-48 test methodology. The corrosion tests were conducted on various alloys, and the results were analyzed using weight loss technique and electrochemical techniques, in conjunction with surface char- acterization tools.

Selection and Characterization for Corrosion Control

In a recent study by the National Association of Corrosion Engineers （NACE）, the global cost of corrosion was estimated to be US$ 2.5 trillion, equivalent to 3.4% of the global Gross Domestic Product [htto：//imtacact.nace.org/]. The prevention practices could save between study found that implementing the best corrosion 15%-35% of the cost of damage. One of the important measures to reduce the corrosion damage is using an appropriate material. Selection of a suitable material according to corrosivity of the service environment is essentially important in battle against industrial corrosion. Corrosion detection, damage characterization and surface analysis are critical approaches to fundamental understanding of the root cause and detailed mechanism of corrosion. They lay a foundation for prevention and mitigation of material corrosion in service environments. A technical breakthrough in these fields may result in significantly widened applications of traditional and emerging materials.