Corrosion resistance of austenitic stainless steel in sulphuric acid

The resistance and susceptibility of austenitic stainless steel, Type 304, exposed to strong tetraoxosulphate (VI) acids (2 and 5 M concentrations) contaminated with sodium chloride at ambient temperatures was investigated by gravimetric and metallographic/scanning electron microscopy surface characterization methods. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) was used to examine and characterize the test specimen’s surface morphology after immersion in the corrosive media. Surface corrosion deposit composition was analyzed with the SEM paired with energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS). This paper reports the observed severe general and pitting corrosion and the resistance of the steel to corrosion at different concentrations of the acid chloride media. The results obtained showed the weak corrosion resistance/appreciable corrosion susceptibility of the stainless steel alloy to the test environments.