Corrosion Behavior of Fe-Ni Bainitic Steel Through an Inverted Austempering Multi-Step Process for Weathering Steel Applications

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

A Fe-Ni Bainitic steel as a weathering steel application was developed by combining its excellent mechanical properties and corrosion resistance in maritime environments. Nickel concentration (0.4-3 wt%) and inverted austempering multi-step (IAM) process were primary determinants of the microstructure of the Fe-Ni Bainitic steel. The initial austempering steel was performed at 300 o C for 600 seconds to obtain a partly bainitic transformation. The steel was heated again for 1800 s at 450 o C. The microstructure was comprised of ferrite, a blocky martensite/austenite island, and a homogeneous lath-shape bainite structure with widths ranging from 4.67 to 6.89 µm. The maximum strength, 1480 MPa, was obtained with 3 wt% nickel. In this study, corrosion behavior was investigated utilizing potentiodynamic and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) tests. A higher nickel content in Fe-Ni Bainitic steel refined the grain size, improved the bainite fraction, lowered the corrosion rate to 0.0257 mmpy, and increased the charge transfer of film resistance to 1369 Ω.