Influence of Sulfur Content on the Corrosion Resistance of 17-4PH Stainless Steel

According to specification standards, the basic chemical composition of steel 17-4PH for special and critical applications is 15-17% Cr, 3.0-5.0% Ni, 3.0-5.0% Cu, 0.07% C (max) and 0.15-0.45% (Nb + Ta) (wt.%). The maximum sulfur content is 0.030%. However, as it will be shown in this work, this maximum limit for sulfur is too high for services where high corrosion resistance is necessary. Two samples of 17-4PH steel with similar base compositions, but quite different sulfur contents (0.027% and 0.001%S), were compared with respect to pitting corrosion and sensitization. Both materials were heat treated according to commercial treatments A, H900, H1100, H1150 and H1150D (ASTM A-1082). Two corrosion tests were applied to compare the steels. The first one was the double-loop electrochemical potentiodynamic reactivation (DL-EPR) test in 0.25 M H₂SO₄ + 0.01 KSCN solution, which is used to measure the degree of sensitization. The second test was the anodic polarization in 3.5%NaCl solution, commonly used to evaluate the pitting corrosion resistance. Detailed microstructural characterization by magnetic measurements, light optical and scanning electron microscopy was performed. As main conclusion, despite that both steels have chemical compositions in accordance with the standards, the steel with higher sulfur was much more susceptible to pitting and sensitization.