Effects of rare earth modifying inclusions on the pitting corrosion of 13Cr4Ni martensitic stainless steel

In this study,the pitting corrosion behavior of 13Cr4Ni martensitic stainless steel(BASE)and that modified with rare earth(REM)in 0.1 mol/L Na Cl solution were characterized.Techniques such as automatic secondary electron microscope(ASPEX PSEM detector),scanning electron microscope(SEM),transmission electron microscope(TEM),scanning Kelvin probe force microscope(SKP),potentiodynamic and potentiostatic polarizations were employed.The results obtained indicate that BASE steel contains Al_(2)O_(3)/Mn S,Al_(2)O_(3) and Mn S inclusions,while REM steels contain(La,Ce,Cr,Fe)-O and(La,Ce,Cr,Fe)-O-S inclusions.Compared with BASE steel,REM steel is more susceptible to induce the metastable pitting nucleation and repassivation,whereas it restrains the transition from metastable pitting to stable pitting.Adding 0.021%rare earth element to BASE steel can reduce the number and area of inclusions,while that of 0.058%can increase the number and enlarged the size of inclusions,which is also the reason that pitting corrosion resistance of 58 REM steel is slightly lower than that of 21 REM steel.In the process of pitting corrosion induced by Al_(2)O_(3)/Mn S inclusions,Mn S is preferentially anodic dissolved,and also the matrix contacted with Al_(2)O_(3) is subsequently anodic dissolved.For REM steels,anodic dissolution preferentially occurs at the boundary between inclusions and matrix,while(La,Ce,Cr,Fe)-O inclusions chemically dissolve in local acidic environment or are separated from steel matrix.The chemically dissolved substance(La^(3+) and Ce^(3+))of(La,Ce,Cr,Fe)-O inclusions are concentrated in pitting pits,which inhibits its continuous growth.

Effects of rare earth on inclusions and corrosion resistance of 10PCuRE weathering steel

The types, morphologies and distributions of nonmetallic inclusions in Cu-P weathering steels with and without rare earth were analyzed through a quantitative image analyzer, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) attached to SEM. Solid-soluble content of rare earth in the steels was analyzed by non-aqua electroanalysis and ICP. The results showed that rare earth modified the types and the morphologies of inclusions in the weathering steels. The small spherical rare earth oxysulfides and rare earth sulphides replaced the elongated MnS inclusions in the RE weathering steels. The rare earth inclusions dispersedly distributed and most inclusions were smaller than 2 μm in size. The optimum content of RE was 0.0065%-0.016% for 10PCuRE weathering steels containing about 0.002% oxygen and 0.004% sulfur. Solid-soluble content of rare earth in steels was (14-20)×10-6, which can act as a micro-alloying element. The corrosion resistance of 10PCuRE weathering steels and Q235 were studied by dry-wet cyclic immersion test. Their corrosion rates were obtained respectively. The polarization curves and pitting corrosion behaviors of weathering steels with and without rare earth were measured by electrochemical methods. The corrosion resistance of Cu-P weathering steels was improved by adding an appropriate amount of rare earth. Less and fewer rare earth inclusions largely decreased pitting susceptibility and rate of pit propagation. The pitting potential and the resistance against pitting corrosion of the RE weathering steel were significantly improved due to the modification of rare earth to inclusions.

Analysis on clogging of submerged entry nozzle in continuous casting of high strength steel with rare earth

The type of inclusions in tundish steel and the formation mechanism of the submerged entry nozzle(SEN)clogging in the continuous casting of the rare earth(RE)high strength steel without calcium treatment were studied based on the plant trials and thermodynamic calculation.It was found that Ce_(2)O_(3) and CeAlO_(3) in tundish molten steel were transformed into Ce_(2)O_(2)S+CaO-Al_(2)O_(3) with the size of 2-3 lm during cooling.When the flow velocity of molten steel on surface of the SEN was slow due to the boundary layer effect,Ce_(2)O_(3) inclusion in molten steel reacted with Al_(2)O_(3) in the SEN refractory to form CeAlO3.With the continuous erosion of molten steel and reaction,the compositions of CeAlO_(3),Al_(2)O_(3) and CaO were aggregated,and the clogging layers with different zones were formed on surface of the SEN.Meanwhile,a small amount of molten steel remaining in the arc zone and corner zone of the SEN formed solidified steel.When calcium treatment is canceled,the reaction probability between inclusions in molten steel and refractory should be reduced by improving the material and shape of the SEN.

Origin mechanism of pitting corrosion induced by cerium inclusions

In this paper,the origin mechanism of pitting corrosion induced by Ce_(2)O_(3),Ce_(2)O_(2)S,and CeAlO_(3) inclusions in a microalloyed steel was investigated by field emission scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive spectroscopy and electron backscattered diffraction,conductivity atomic force microscopy,immersion test,and first-principles calculation.The results show that the Ce_(2)O_(3),Ce_(2)O_(2)S,and CeAlO_(3) inclusions are non-conductive,which are impossible to form corrosion couples with the steel matrix.There are no obvious lattice distortion zones in the steel matrix around the Ce_(2)O_(3),Ce_(2)O_(2)S,and CeAlO_(3) inclusions,so it is difficult to form micro-galvanic corrosion near the Ce inclusion.The order of work functions of the Ce inclusions and the steel matrix from small to large is Ce_(2)O_(2)S<Ce_(2)O_(3)<CeAlO_(3)<steel matrix,which is consistent with their dissolution sequence in the immersion test in _(3).5 wt%NaCl solution.Consequently,it is effective and reliable to use work function to predict or judge the dissolution behaviors of the Ce inclusions or steel matrix in corrosive solution.The Ce_(2)O_(3),Ce_(2)O_(2)S,and CeAlO_(3) inclusions have the tendency of self-dissolution and dissolve preferentially to the steel matrix in the solution by the salt effect,which lead to pitting corrosion of Ce-containing microalloyed steel.

Thermodynamic analysis of inclusion in weld

The metallurgical effect of light rare earth on inclusion in weld metal has been investigated by means of scanning electron microscope (SEM), X-ray energy dispersion spectrometer (EDAX), micro particle analyzer (MPA), electon probe microscope (EPMA),and thermodynamic analysis. The results have shown that the light rare earth alloys have a cleaning and modifying action after transferred into the weld metal through coating electrode. Besides, their action of deoxidization is stronger that of desulphuration.