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Effect of Austenitization-Cooling on Microstructure and Localized Corrosion Behavior of 13Cr Martensitic Stainless Steel

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Abstract

The present study investigates the microstructural changes and corrosion behavior of 13Cr martensitic stainless steel (MSS), austenitized at 1040 °C followed by cooling to room temperature through oil-quenching, air-cooling and furnace-cooling. Oil-quenching and air-cooling produced a lath martensitic microstructure, while, the oil-quenched condition showed δ-ferrite stringers and quench cracks. The slow furnace-cooling produced a widmanstatten type ferrite with Cr-rich carbides. Air-cooled condition developed a higher hardness than that for the oil-quenched and furnace-cooled conditions due to martensitic structure and fine carbide precipitation along the prior austenitic grain boundaries (PAGB) during cooling from austenitization temperature. Double loop-electrochemical potentiokinetic reactivation (DL-EPR) tests and immersion tests followed by scanning electron microscope examination indicated that furnace-cooled and air-cooled conditions are susceptible to intergranular corrosion (IGC). Slow cooling is highly detrimental to IGC. Air-cooled condition showed preferential attack along the PAGB boundaries in both DL-EPR and immersion tests whereas furnace-cooled condition showed combined heavy uniform corrosion and IGC. No preferential attack is observed in oil-quenched condition, and it exhibited uniform corrosion. The present results show that the austenitization followed by cooling in air is sufficient to cause sensitization in 13Cr MSS. However, controlled (fast) air-cooling (avoiding sensitization during cooling) would be better a choice for austenitization heat treatment of 13Cr MSS.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Materials Processing & Corrosion Engineering Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Center, Mumbai, 400 085, India

    Sunil Kumar Bonagani & Vivekanand Kain

  2. Materials Science Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Center, Mumbai, 400 085, India

    N. Naveen Kumar & Harish Donthula

Authors
  1. Sunil Kumar Bonagani
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  2. Vivekanand Kain
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  3. N. Naveen Kumar
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  4. Harish Donthula
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Contributions

Sunil Kumar Bonagani has carried out the experiments and analysis. Sunil Kumar Bonagani has conceived the original idea and wrote the manuscript with support from Dr V. Kain. Harish and Naveen helped in electron microscopy characterization. The authors appreciate the assistacne received from Dr Amit Verma, Materials Group, BARC in measreing the cooling rates.

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Correspondence to Sunil Kumar Bonagani.

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Bonagani, S.K., Kain, V., Naveen Kumar, N. et al. Effect of Austenitization-Cooling on Microstructure and Localized Corrosion Behavior of 13Cr Martensitic Stainless Steel. J. of Materi Eng and Perform 30, 2291–2299 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11665-021-05460-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11665-021-05460-6

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