Tribocorrosion behaviour of type S31254 steel in seawater: Identification of corrosion-wear components and effect of potential

Tribocorrosion is an irreversible transformation of materials and often causes the premature failure of engineering components. In this work, the tribocorrosion behaviour of S31254 steel was investigated on a pin-on-disc tribometer at 50 N, 0.24 m s−1. In seawater, there existed a synergy between corrosion and wear, and this synergy was controlled by potentials through deteriorating the characteristics of the contact surfaces. Especially at +0.3 V, pitting corrosion occurred on metal surface, and the generated pits became the preferred locations of wear and tear, leading to a great synergy and accelerated materials loss rate. Combining X-ray microanalysis with the morphologies of the contact surfaces, the features of abrasive wear, adhesive wear, delamination and plastic deformation were revealed. Quantitative analysis shows that mechanical and corrosion-accelerated wear determined the total mass loss of S31254 steel during tribocorrosion at different potentials.