To prevent forms of corrosion such as pitting, crevice corrosion etc.. in construction and architecture is very important the choice of stainless steel to be used.
Stainless steel and corrosion resistance.
The common characteristic of all types of stainless steel (austenitic, ferritic, martensitic and austenitic-ferritic) is the resistance to corrosion. How can they be immune from attacks by aggressive agents? Thanks to the self-passivation process. It creates an invisible film of chromium oxide on the surface of the steel that allows to protect itself from the external environment. This process is spontaneous and if the protective film is damaged, itself re-triggers automatically going to restore it.
Chromium: this is the secret of stainless steels.
According to EN 10020 standards, stainless steels to be considered as such, must contain a minimum of 10.5% chromium. So theoretically, the greater the chromium content, the greater the resistance to corrosion of the alloy. This is an example. Stainless steel AISI 304 has an average of 18% chromium.
Type of stainless steel. What use in construction and architecture?
What are the most frequently used families of stainless steel in contruction and architecture?
- Austenitic stainless steels:
– About Chromium 18% + Nickel 8%
– Great cold plastic deformation
– Fair machinability
– Not hardenable (but with hardness and tensile characteristics considerably increased)
– Non-magnetics
- Ferritic stainless steels:
– About Chromium 17%
– Good mechanical characteristics (upgradeabloe with cold-hardening)
– Easily workable for plastic deformation and chip removal
– Good weldability
– Ferromagnetics
- Austenitic-ferritic stainless steels:
– Dual-array structure (austenite and ferrite)
– High yield strength and breaking load
– Excellent corrosion resistance
– Ferromagnetics
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