A research on the corrosion and stress corrosion cracking susceptibility of 316L stainless steel exposed to supercritical water

This study investigated the corrosion and stress corrosion cracking susceptibility of 316L stainless steel exposed to 550 °C and 600 °C supercritical water. XRD, SEM, EDS and EBSD analyses have been carried out to characterize the microstructure of the tested specimens. Results indicate that increasing the test temperature reduced the corrosion and SCC resistance of 316L SS. The oxide scale of corroded specimen shows a duplex structure, and the fracture analysis indicates that the formation of Fe3O4 ‘channels’ in the Fe-Cr spinel layer contributes to the intergranular and transgranular SCC of the materials in 550 °C and 600 °C SCW.