Lecture 12: Ferritic Stainless Steels

Mmat 380

Production of Stainless Steels

Types Major Alloy AISI
Additions
• Ferrititc - α Fe-Cr 4xx
• Martensitic Fe-Cr-C 4xx
• Austenitic - γ Fe-Ni-Cr 3xx
• Duplex (α+γ) Fe-Cr-Ni
• Precipitation
Fe-Cr-Ni
hardened
• Super ferrites & Higher alloy versions
austenitics of 1 & 3

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 Topics

• What ferritic stainless steel is

• Advantages
• Problems
• Applications
• Effects of chemistry changes
• New grades

Wt % Cr

Liquid Fe-Cr phase diagram

• Have a γ-loop
Temperature (°C)

γ−loop • Beyond ~12%Cr, α at all T

• Brittle σ-phase at high
α ferrite
levels of Cr

σ−phase

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 Ferritic Stainless Steels

• 12-30% Cr, α at all T

• Typical microstructures:

ferrite

Group 1 (13-18%Cr) e.g.: 430 Group 2 (25-30%Cr) e.g.: 446

Family of alloys

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Low Cr

Table 7-1a (Smith):

Chemical compositions
Med Cr and typical applications
of wrought ferritic
stainless steel

High Cr

Examples of ferritic stainless steel

Grade Alloy additions

430 17%Cr+0.12%C Standard
434 17%Cr+0.12%C+1%Mo + pitting (Mo)
436 17%Cr+0.12%C+1%Mo+Nb(5x%C) Heat and pitting
resistance
(weldable)
442-446 High%Cr:21-25% High T scaling
resistance

Furnace parts

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 Advantages

• Cheap
• Same corrosion resistance as γ grades
• Less susceptible to stress corrosion cracking
(SCC)

Restricted use because

• Lack of ductililty: poor formability

– Notch sensitivity: DBTT BCC
– Poor weldability: no phase change: large
g.s. in HAZ can reduce steel toughness
– Low C solubility: easy carbide formation and
sensitivity – use low C grades or stabilized
grades Ti/Nb

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 Exhaust System

Challenges to stainless steel in automotive

applications: Exhaust System
Corrosion and high temperature
• As temperature increases changes occur
in the nature of the chromium oxide
surface film
– At small temperature increases in an
oxidizing gas, film can remain protective
because diffusion of oxygen through the film
is slow

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Challenges to stainless steel in automotive
applications: Exhaust System

Corrosion and high temperature

• As temperatures increase more scaling
and oxidation can begin to occur
– Scaling – formation of a thick layer of
oxidation products on metals at high
temperature
• Increasing %Cr and %Al in the steel
helps to improve scaling/oxidation
resistance

Oxidation resistance in stainless

steels

Composition Max. operating temp.

(°C)
< 18 %Cr 800
18-20 %Cr 1000
25 %Cr 1100

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 Automotive exhaust system:
• Type 409 typically used
– (10.5 %Cr + Ti) - Muffler grade
• Muffler
• tail pipes
• catalytic converter
• Light trucks – operate at higher temperatures
than automobiles – 10.5 %Cr not adequate
– Went to 439 (18 %Cr + Ti)
Q: Why not 430?
A: good resistance to scaling at elevated T
but no stabilizing element: not any good for welding

Catalytic converter

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 Exhaust Manifold

Challenges to stainless steel in automotive

applications: Trim & Decorative use
430
– inherently bright
– anneals well
– Non-hardenable grade straight chromium stainless
steel
– Most widely used ferritic grade
434
– 430 + 1 %Mo – resistance to corrosion in salt type
environments
436
– 434 + additional alloy elements to improve forming
characteristics

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430

434

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 Difficulties with welding ferritic
stainless steel

• Excessive grain growth

(lower toughness in HAZ)
2. Sensitization

Standard ferritic stainless steel

• Relatively low toughness at low temperature

and poor weldability (due to large grain size)
– limited acceptance for structural applications
• Used mainly in non-structural applications,
such as automotive, appliance and luggage trim
which require good resistance to corrosion and
bright highly polished finishes

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 Table 7-1b (Smith):
Chemical composition of some of the new
ferritic stainless steels

Name %C %Cr %N %Ti %Mo

18-2 .02 18 0.4 2
26-1S .03 26 0.5 1
E-Brite 26-1
.002 26 0.01 1
(Airco)
29Cr-4Mo
.004 29 0.01 4
(Du Pont)

Improved pitting resistance

Name %C %Cr %N %Ti %Mo

18-2 .02 18 0.4 2
26-1S .03 26 0.5 1
E-Brite 26-1
.002 26 0.01 1
(Airco)
29Cr-4Mo
.004 29 0.01 4
(Du Pont)

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 Improved weldability

Name %C %Cr %N %Ti %Mo

18-2 .02 18 0.4 2
26-1S .03 26 0.5 1
E-Brite 26-1
.002 26 0.01 1
(Airco)
29Cr-4Mo
.004 29 0.01 4
(Du Pont)

Improved Non Standard (Over AISI)

• Take out C; add N, add Cr + Mo
• Pitting resistance:
– Pitting Resistance Index (PRE): %Cr + 3.3 %Mo + 18 %N
– Old 409 = 11.0 430 = 17.0 434 = 20.3
– New 18-2 = 24.6 E-Brite = 29.3 29-4 = 42.2
• Note – High ductilities when we take out C (less
carbide content)
– i.e. 30-37 % elongation versus 20-25 %
• Low ductile-to-brittle transition temperature
– -18°C versus up to 120°C
– (Note: increase in ductile-to-brittle with increasing %Cr
and increasing %C – high carbide content)

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 Modifications to ferritic stainless steel

• 409: 11%Cr, 0.08%C, 0.05%Ti

• Modifications also include adding Mo
and Al (resist pitting and high
temperature oxidation)

Ferritics – review
• Effects of: • Advantages
– Cr and increasing Cr • Cheap
– Mo • Same corrosion
– N resistance as γ grades
• Less susceptible to
– Ti, Nb, Ta stress corrosion
– C and decreasing C cracking (SCC)

• Problems:
• Weldability – large grain size in HAZ
• Ductile-to-brittle transition temperature (BCC) therefore
can’t use at low temperature
• Formability (BCC) Not as good as γ unless extra low
carbon (ELC)

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