Liquid metal corrosion of T91 and A316L materials in Pb-Bi eutectic at temperatures 400-600°C

The corrosion resistance of T91 and A316L materials was tested in stagnant liquid lead–bismuth eutectic (LBE). The materials were exposed for 175, 500, 1250, 2300 and 3000 h at temperatures from 425 to 600 °C under 5%H2 + Ar cover gas atmosphere. Severe corrosion occurred at temperatures above 500 °C where three corrosion modes were distin-guished: stable oxide .mode, transition mode, and dissolution mode featuring Cr 15 and Ni leaching and material loss. The principle corrosion mechanisms were uniform penetra-tion and dissolution of the penetrated volumes. At these temperatures (>500 °C) T91 had a better corrosion resistance (corrosion rate ~<137 m/year) compared to A316L (6250 lm/year). The transition corrosion mode continued 2–3 times longer for T91 material due to resid- ual oxides found even after 3000 h of exposure. At low temperatures (