Sulphuric acid corrosion of ultrafine-grained mild steel processed by equal-channel angular pressing

A bulk ultrafine-grained (UFG) mild steel with a ferrite grain size of approximately 200 nm and a dispersed distribution of iron carbide particles was fabricated by equal-channel angular pressing (ECAP) at 400 °C. The corrosion behaviour of the ECAP-processed mild steel and pure iron was investigated in a 0.5 mol/L H2SO4 solution. They exhibited a higher corrosion rate and better anodic passivity properties due to the presence of more crystalline defects. As a result of the refinement of the iron carbide particles, the forming ability of a continuous dense passive film was improved.