Passivation behavior of a ferritic stainless steel in concentrated alkaline solutions

The passivation behavior of AISI 430 ferritic stainless steel was investigated in concentrated alkaline solutions in relation to several test parameters, using electrochemical techniques. Increasing solution pH (varying from 11.5 to 14.0) leads to an increase in the corrosion rate of the alloy. Mott–Schottky analysis revealed that passive films formed on AISI 430 ferritic stainless steel behave as n-type semiconductor and the donor densities increased with pH. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) results showed that the reciprocal capacitance of the passive film is directly proportional to its thickness, which decreases with pH increase. The results revealed that for this ferritic stainless steel in concentrated alkaline solutions, decreasing the solution pH offers better conditions for forming passive films with higher protection behavior, due to the growth of a much thicker and less defective film.