Influence of Si addition on the corrosion behavior of 9Cr ferritic/martensitic steel in static liquid lead-bismuth eutectic

This study investigated the corrosion behavior of 9Cr ferritic/martensitic (F/M) steel with varying silicon contents when exposed to static lead-bismuth eutectic at temperatures between 450 °C and 550 °C. Except for samples corroded at 450 °C for 500 h, which developed a bilayer consisting of magnetite layer and Fe-Cr spinel layer, the oxide scale at 450 °C and 500 °C consists of exterior magnetite layer, Fe-Cr spinel layer, and disorganized internal oxide zone. Most of samples that corroded at 550 °C underwent dissolution corrosion. With the addition of Si, 9Cr F/M steel demonstrated enhanced corrosion resistance to LBE at low temperatures and effectively delaying the onset of dissolution corrosion at 550 °C.