The effect of surface treatment on the oxidation of ferritic stainless steels used for solid oxide fuel cell interconnects

Ferritic stainless steels are candidate interconnect materials for solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC); however, the oxidation resistance of commercial stainless steels within the operating temperature range of 700–800 °C is not adequate. A relatively thick, poorly conducting oxide layer forms on the surface of the stainless steel interconnect, decreasing cell performance. One way of modifying the oxidation behaviour of an alloy is through surface treatment. The aim of this work is to perform a systematic study of the effect of surface treatment (sandblasting and cold rolling) on the oxidation behaviour of three different ferritic stainless steels at 800 °C in air. Oxidized specimens are characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). In addition, specimens oxidized under the same conditions for 15 min are examined using secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) depth profiling and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) depth profiling.For all three steels, the as-is (undeformed) specimens have a lower mass gain than the deformed specimens. The steel with the highest Cr content has significantly higher mass gains than the other two steels, which have similar mass gains. X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy results indicate that the oxide scale formed on all the specimens consists of an inner layer of chromia and an outer spinel layer. The relative amounts of the two oxide phases present depends on both the steel and treatment condition. The presence of insulating oxides at the metal/oxide interface is detected with both surface science techniques and electron microscopy.