Effect of annealing treatment on microstructure evolution and the associated corrosion behavior of a super-duplex stainless steel

The influence of annealing temperature on the pitting corrosion of a super-duplex stainless steel (SDSS) with mischmetal addition was investigated in chloride solution by critical pitting temperature (CPT) measurement. The corrosion behavior is strongly dependent on the microstructure, namely the presence of secondary phases, elemental partitioning behavior and volume fractions of ferrite and austenite. Based on CPT results and alloying rules, the optimal annealing temperature is determined as 1070 °C and a guideline for further development of improved SDSS is formulated.