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A new methodology to efficiently test pitting corrosion: design of a 3D-printed sample holder to avoid the occurrence of crevice corrosion in chemically aggressive media

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Abstract

Pitting susceptibility of metals in corrosive environment is usually measured using a three-electrode set-up to conduct accelerated corrosion tests. A widely accepted methodology consists in mounting a sample in epoxy resin and connect it with a copper wire. However, in chloride-rich environments, this often results in the occurrence of crevice corrosion instead of pitting. In this study, a new 3D-printed sample holder was designed and its efficiency to study pitting corrosion of metals validated. The new method enables to study of pitting corrosion by improving edge enclosure, thus avoiding crevice corrosion. The validation is based on two case studies where stainless steel samples are polarized in (i) 500-ppm Cl− at ambient temperature and (ii) saturated Ca(OH)2 with 1-M Cl− at 60 °C. The specifically chosen grade (AISI 316 L) shows failure of the electrode clearly initiated at the epoxy sample edge in traditional tests and poor reproducibility. Results showed that the use of the 3D-printed sample holder significantly improved the reliability and efficiency of the testing method, clearly avoiding unrealistic crevice corrosion in the tested conditions. The designed sample holder therefore enables more realistic and representative pitting results in corrosion research opening the possibility of conducting far less-expensive repetitive tests.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the Belgian Agency for Radioactive Waste and Enriched Fissile Materials (ONDRAF/NIRAS) for the financial support. The Private Foundation De Nayer is kindly thanked for funding the electrochemical potentiostat.

Funding

The present study is supported by the Belgian Agency for Radioactive Waste and Enriched Fissile Materials (ONDRAF/NIRAS) and the Private Foundation De Nayer.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical Engineering, Process and Environmental Technology Lab, KU Leuven, J. De Nayerlaan 5, 2860, Sint-Katelijne-Waver, Belgium

    Brent Verhoeven, Maarten Nagels, Pieter Van Aken & Raf Dewil

  2. RD&D Department, ONDRAF/NIRAS, Kunstlaan 14, 1210, Brussels, Belgium

    Roberto Gaggiano

  3. Department of Civil Engineering, Materials and Structures, KU Leuven, J. De Nayerlaan 5, 2860, Sint-Katelijne-Waver, Belgium

    Barbara Rossi

  4. Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford, Parks Road, OX1 3PJ, Oxford, UK

    Barbara Rossi & Raf Dewil

  5. Department of Materials Engineering, KU Leuven, Kasteelpark Arenberg 44, 3001, Leuven, Belgium

    Walter Bogaerts

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  1. Brent Verhoeven
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Contributions

Conceptualization: RD, WB, and BR; Methodology: BV, MN, and WB; Formal analysis and investigation: BV and MN; Writing—original draft preparation: BV and PVanA; Writing—review and editing: PVanA, RG, BR, WB, and RD; Funding Acquisition: RD and WB; Supervision: RG, RD, and WB.

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Correspondence to Raf Dewil.

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Verhoeven, B., Nagels, M., Van Aken, P. et al. A new methodology to efficiently test pitting corrosion: design of a 3D-printed sample holder to avoid the occurrence of crevice corrosion in chemically aggressive media. J Appl Electrochem 53, 167–176 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10800-022-01759-x

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