CORROSION MECHANISMS OF AN AISI TYPE-316L SINTERED STAINLESS-STEEL IN SODIUM-CHLORIDE SOLUTION

The electrochemical behaviour of a sintered stainless steel and of a wrought AISI type stainless steel of the same composition were compared. The electrochemical measurements used were the evolution of the corrosion potential vs time, the anodic and cathodic polarizations and the current-time transients. Comparisons were also performed for the sintered alloy before and after stabilization of the corrosion potential. The low corrosion resistance of the sintered stainless steel is due to the formation of a galvanic couple between the free surface and the inside of the interconnected pores. Hence the free surface is cathodically protected by the pores, but reciprocally the corrosion increases inside the pores where the reactive area is very large.