Passivity of austenitic stainless steels

Book chapter, 2011

Austenitic stainless steels appear to have signiŽcantly greater potential for aqueous corrosion resistance than their ferritic counterparts. This is because the three most commonly used austenite stabilizers, Ni, Mn, and N, all contribute to passivity. As in the case of ferritic stainless steel, Mo, one of the most potent alloying additions for improving corrosion resistance, can also be added to austenitic stainless steels in order to improve the stability of the passive Žlm, especially in the presence of Cl ions. The passive Žlm formed on austenitic stainless steels is often reported to be duplex, consisting of an inner barrier oxide Žlm and outer deposit hydroxide or salt Žlm.