This chapter discusses the sintering process for stainless steel powders and its influence on corrosion resistance. It begins with a review of sintering furnaces and atmospheres and the effect of temperature and density on compact properties such as conductivity, ductility, and strength. It then describes the relationship between sintered density and corrosion resistance and how it varies for different types of powders and operating environments. The chapter also explains how stainless steel powders respond to different sintering atmospheres, including hydrogen, hydrogen-nitrogen, and vacuum, and liquid-phase sintering processes.

This chapter describes a number of corrosion testing methods for sintered stainless steels, including immersion, salt spray, and electrochemical tests, ferric chloride and ferroxyl tests, and elevated-temperature oxidation resistance tests. It also provides corrosion resistance and performance data from various sources.

Corrosion failures of welds can occur even when the proper base metal and filler metal have been selected, industry codes and standards have been followed, and welds have been deposited that possess full weld penetration and have proper shape and contour. This chapter describes some of the general characteristics associated with the corrosion of weldments. The role of macro- and microcompositional variations, a feature common to weldments, is emphasized in this chapter to bring out differences that need to be realized in comparing the corrosion of weldments to that of wrought materials. The discussion covers the factors influencing corrosion of weldments, microstructural features of weld microstructures, various forms of weld corrosion, and welding practice to minimize corrosion.

Carbon and low-alloy steels are the most frequently welded metallic materials, and much of the welding metallurgy research has focused on this class of materials. Key metallurgical factors of interest include an understanding of the solidification of welds, microstructure of the weld and heat-affected zone (HAZ), solid-state phase transformations during welding, control of toughness in the HAZ, the effects of preheating and postweld heat treatment, and weld discontinuities. This chapter provides information on the classification of steels and the welding characteristics of each class. It describes the issues related to corrosion of carbon steel weldments and remedial measures that have proven successful in specific cases. The major forms of environmentally assisted cracking affecting weldment corrosion are covered. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the effects of welding practice on weldment corrosion.

Austenitic stainless steels exhibit a single-phase, face-centered cubic structure that is maintained over a wide range of temperatures. This chapter provides a basic understanding of grade designations, properties, and welding considerations of austenitic stainless steels. It also discusses general types of corrosive attack and their effects on service integrity as well as detection and control measures. The five corrosive attack mechanisms covered are intergranular corrosion, preferential attack associated with weld metal precipitates, pitting and crevice corrosion, stress-corrosion cracking, and microbiologically influenced corrosion.

Ferritic stainless steels are essentially iron-chromium alloys with body-centered cubic crystal structures. Chromium content is usually in the range of 11 to 30%. The primary advantage of the ferritic stainless steels, and in particular the high-chromium, high-molybdenum grades, is their excellent stress-corrosion cracking resistance and good resistance to pitting and crevice corrosion in chloride environments. This chapter provides information on the classifications, properties, and general welding considerations of ferritic stainless steels. The emphasis is placed on intergranular corrosion, which is the most common cause of failure in ferritic stainless steel weldments. Two case histories involving intergranular corrosion failures of ferritic stainless steel weldments are included. A brief discussion on hydrogen embrittlement is also provided.

Duplex stainless steels are two-phase alloys based on the iron-chromium-nickel system. Duplex stainless steels offer corrosion resistance and cost advantages over the common austenitic stainless steels. Although there are some problems with welding duplex alloys, considerable progress has been made in defining the correct parameters and chemistry modifications for achieving sound welds. This chapter provides a basic understanding of the development, grade designations, microstructure, properties, and general welding considerations of duplex stainless steel. It also discusses the influence of ferrite-austenite balance on corrosion resistance and the influence of different welding conditions on various material properties of alloy 2205 (UNS S31803).

Martensitic stainless steels are essentially iron-chromium-carbon alloys that possess a body-centered tetragonal crystal structure (martensitic) in the hardened condition. Martensitic stainless steels are similar to plain carbon or low-alloy steels that are austenitized, hardened by quenching, and then tempered for increased ductility and toughness. This chapter provides a basic understanding of grade designations, properties, corrosion resistance, and general welding considerations of martensitic stainless steels. It also discusses the causes for hydrogen-induced cracking in martensitic stainless steels and describes sulfide stress corrosion resistance of type 410 weldments.

Nickel-base alloys used for low-temperature aqueous corrosion are commonly referred to as corrosion-resistant alloys (CRAs), and nickel alloys used for high-temperature applications are known as heat-resistant alloys, high-temperature alloys, or superalloys. The emphasis in this chapter is on the CRAs and in particular nickel-chromium-molybdenum alloys. The chapter provides a basic understanding of general welding considerations and describes the welding metallurgy of molybdenum-containing CRAs and of nickel-copper, nickel-chromium, and nickel-chromium-iron CRAs. It discusses the corrosion behavior of nickel-molybdenum alloys and nickel-chromium-molybdenum alloys. Information on the phase stability and corrosion behavior of nickel-base alloys is also included.

The nonferrous alloys described in this chapter include aluminum and aluminum alloys, copper and copper alloys, titanium and titanium alloys, zirconium and zirconium alloys, and tantalum and tantalum alloys. Some of the factors that affect the corrosion performance of welded nonferrous assemblies include galvanic effects, crevices, assembly stresses in products susceptible to stress-corrosion cracking, and hydrogen pickup and subsequent cracking. The emphasis is placed on the compositions, general welding considerations, and corrosion behavior of these alloys.

Many factors must be considered when welding dissimilar metals, and adequate procedures for the various metals and sizes of interest for a specific application must be developed and qualified. Most combinations of dissimilar metals can be joined by solid-state welding (diffusion welding, explosion welding, friction welding, or ultrasonic welding), brazing, or soldering where alloying between the metals is normally insignificant. This chapter describes the factors influencing joint integrity and discusses the corrosion behavior of dissimilar metal weldments.

This chapter reviews weld corrosion in three key application areas: petroleum refining and petrochemical operations, boiling water reactor piping systems, and components used in pulp and paper plants. The discussion of each area addresses general design and service characteristics, types of weld corrosion issues, and prevention or mitigation strategies.

This chapter addresses in-service monitoring and corrosion testing of weldments. Three categories of corrosion monitoring are discussed: direct testing of coupons, electrochemical techniques, and nondestructive testing techniques. The majority of the test methods for evaluating corrosion of weldments are used to assess intergranular corrosion of stainless steels and high-nickel alloys. Other applicable tests evaluate pitting and crevice corrosion, stress-corrosion cracking, and microbiologically influenced corrosion. Each of these test methods is reviewed in this chapter.

This chapter lays the groundwork for understanding electrode kinetics associated with corrosion. It presents a simple but useful theory relating kinetics to the polarization behavior of half-cell reactions. The theory is based on the observation that electrode potentials vary as a function of current density or charge transfer in a given area. The chapter explains how to measure and plot electrode potentials and currents and how to interpret the resulting polarization curves. It also discusses the effects of concentration gradients, explaining how they cause diffusion and, in some cases, produce changes in electrode potential.

This chapter develops a corrosion model that accounts for solution potentials and the effects of coupling between cathodic and anodic reactions. It begins by examining potential differences at various points (in the solution) along a path from the anode to the cathode area. It then presents a simple model of a galvanically coupled electrode, in which the metal is represented as an array of anode and cathode reaction surfaces. The chapter goes on to develop the related theory of mixed electrodes, showing how it can be used to predict corrosion rates based on measured potentials and current densities, polarization characteristics, and physical variables such as anode-to-cathode area ratios and fluid velocity. It also discusses the effect of corrosion inhibitors, galvanic coupling, and external currents, making extensive use of polarization curves.

This chapter discusses the principles and procedures of electrochemical measurements used to investigate corrosion behaviors. It begins by presenting a diagram of a basic potentiostatic circuit, which consists of a working electrode and an auxiliary or counter electrode suspended in an electrolytic solution. It describes how corrosion potentials and current densities are measured and explains how to deal with various sources of error. It also explains how electrochemical impedance measurements are used and describes the underlying theory and procedures in some detail.

This chapter familiarizes readers with the basic concepts of corrosion, discussing chemical reactions, ion transfer mechanisms, electrochemical processes and variables, and the formation of solid corrosion products. It presents a simple but effective teaching tool, the elementary electrochemical corrosion circuit, using it to explain how electric potential differences drive the corrosion process and how corrosion rates vary in proportion to current density. The chapter concludes with a discussion on the importance of corrosion products, such as oxides and hydroxides, and how their formation can be a major factor in controlling corrosion.

This chapter provides a thorough introduction to the electrochemical thermodynamics that govern electrode reactions associated with corrosion. It begins with a review of the thermodynamic criteria for the stability of chemical reactions based on Gibbs free energy and explains how energies of formation are determined using the oxidation of iron as an example. It then considers how iron reacts with hydrochloric acid, explaining how it can be expressed as two half reactions modeled as electrodes in an electrochemical cell. It goes on to describe the chemical reactions occurring at each electrode, accounting for different variables, mechanisms, and electrochemical effects. The chapter concludes with an in-depth review of Pourbaix diagrams, explaining what they reveal about the stability of metal-water systems and the formation of corrosion products.

This chapter discusses the complex polarization characteristics of active-passive metals and addresses related problems in interpreting their corrosion behavior. It begins by presenting several experimentally derived polarization curves for iron, comparing and contrasting them with the iron-water Pourbaix diagram. It then explains how anodic polarization is extremely sensitive to the environment and, as a result, a reasonably complete curve for a given metal-environment system usually can only be inferred. It goes on to describe how such curves are constructed, demonstrating the procedures for a wide range of alloys and environments. The examples also show how factors such as alloy concentration, crystal lattice orientation, temperature, and dissolved oxygen affect corrosion behavior.