Long term corrosion resistance of alumina forming austenitic stainless steels in liquid lead

Alumina forming austenitic steels (AFA) and commercial stainless steels have been exposed in liquid lead with 10 ⁻⁷ wt.% oxygen at 550 °C for up to one year. It is known that chromia forming austenitic stainless steels, such as 316L and 15–15 Ti, have difficulties forming protective oxides in liquid lead at temperatures above 500 °C, which is confirmed in this study. By adding Al to austenitic steels, it is in general terms possible to increase the corrosion resistance. However this study shows that the high Ni containing AFA alloys are attacked by the liquid lead, i.e. dissolution attack occurs. By lowering the Ni content in AFA alloys, it is possible to achieve excellent oxidation properties in liquid lead. Following further optimization of the microstructural properties, low Ni AFA alloys may represent a promising future structural steel for lead cooled reactors.