Tribological behavior of 316H stainless steel in NaNO3-KNO3 molten salt at elevated temperature

The corrosion behaviors of stainless steels in various high-temperature molten salt have been extensively investigated. However, the tribological behavior of the alloys acting as moving parts in the molten salt is rarely reported. In this work, 316H stainless steel was selected to comparatively study its high-temperature tribocorrosion performance in molten solar salt (60% NaNO3+40% KNO3, wt.). Under the drying sliding condition, the wear rate increases at 500 degrees C though the friction coefficient decreases compared to that at room temperature. In contrast, compared to the 500 degrees C dry sliding condition, the wear resistance of 316H at 500 degrees C in molten nitrate salt is remarkably improved owing to the lubrication effect of the molten salt and the enhanced oxidation tendency on the worn surface.

Automated summary

The high-temperature tribocorrosion performance of 316H stainless steel in a molten solar salt was comparatively studied. It was found that under dry sliding conditions, the wear rate increases at 500 degrees C while the friction coefficient decreases. In contrast, the wear resistance of 316H at 500 degrees C in molten nitrate salt is remarkably improved due to the lubrication effect of the molten salt and the enhanced oxidation tendency on the worn surface.