Increasing the Upper Temperature Oxidation Limit of Alumina Forming Austenitic Stainless Steels in Air with Water Vapor

A family of alumina-forming austenitic (AFA) stainless steels is under development for use in aggressive oxidizing conditions from similar to 600-900 A degrees C. These alloys exhibit promising mechanical properties but oxidation resistance in air with water vapor environments is currently limited to similar to 800 A degrees C due to a transition from external protective alumina scale formation to internal oxidation of aluminum with increasing temperature. The oxidation behavior of a series of AFA alloys was systematically studied as a function of Cr, Si, Al, C, and B additions in an effort to provide a basis to increase the upper-temperature oxidation limit. Oxidation exposures were conducted in air with 10% water vapor environments from 800-1000 A degrees C, with post oxidation characterization of the 900 A degrees C exposed samples by electron probe microanalysis (EPMA), scanning and transmission electron microscopy, and photo-stimulated luminescence spectroscopy (PSLS). Increased levels of Al, C, and B additions were found to increase the upper-temperature oxidation limit in air with water vapor to between 950 and 1000 A degrees C. These findings are discussed in terms of alloy microstructure and possible gettering of hydrogen from water vapor at second phase carbide and boride precipitates.