SEM-EDS and XPS Studies of the High Temperature Oxidation Behaviour of Inconel 718

Abstract.

 The oxidation in air under isothermal conditions of Inconel 718 has been investigated at 900 °C. We have studied the firsts stages of the high temperature oxidation mechanism. The oxidised samples were examined using a number of surface analytical techniques including XPS and SEM-EDS. The results have shown that minor alloying elements strongly influence the oxidation behaviour of the alloy:

Previous studies had shown that the rate of the external oxide scale growth and the intergranular oxide penetration during oxidation of Inconel 718 at 900 °C in air are lower than those of Inconel X or Incoloy 800. We suggest that the formation of a quasi continuous scale of the intermetallic phase Ni₃Nb at the oxide-alloy interface could have an important contribution to the good oxidation resistance of Inconel 718.