Corrosion Resistance of 304 Stainless Steel Pipe in Acidic Environment

The acidic environment poses a severe challenge to the corrosion resistance of materials, and it is crucial to choose materials that can work stably in this environment. As a widely used material, the corrosion resistance of 304 stainless steel pipes has attracted much attention. In this article, we will explore the corrosion resistance of 304 stainless steel pipes in acidic environments.

304 stainless steel pipe relies on a thin, strong, and dense layer of surface layer to continue to penetrate and oxidize, thus acquiring corrosion and rust resistance. However, if for some reason, the passive film on the surface of the steel pipe is constantly damaged, air or liquid in the surrounding environmental medium will constantly penetrate or iron atoms in the metal will constantly separate out, forming loose oxidation rust.

304 stainless steel pipe has good corrosion resistance in many media, but in some other media, it may be corroded due to low chemical stability. Therefore, a stainless steel cannot be resistant to all media. Metal corrosion can be divided into physical corrosion, chemical corrosion, and electrochemical corrosion according to the mechanism. In the actual engineering practice, most of the metal corrosion belongs to electrochemical corrosion. The main corrosion forms of stainless steel pipe are uniform corrosion (surface corrosion), pitting corrosion, crevice corrosion, and stress corrosion.

Corrosion Resistance of 304 Stainless Steel Pipe in Acidic Environment：

In the industry, most of the substances that cause corrosion to stainless steel products are acids, so nitric acid can be used to monitor the corrosion resistance of the product. Experiments have shown that 304 stainless steel tubes can maintain their corrosion resistance even at temperatures up to 100℃ under specific concentrations of nitric acid, indicating that they perform very stably and are fully capable of meeting various occasions. It is also no problem for transporting various relatively weak organic acids.

Secondly, stainless steel welded pipe 304 can withstand the corrosion of acidic substances such as oxalic acid, sulfuric acid-iron sulfate, nitric acid, nitric acid-hydrofluoric acid, sulfuric acid-copper sulfate, phosphoric acid, formic acid, acetic acid, etc.

However, when 304 stainless steel pipes are used in environments where a large amount of acidic gases such as SO2 and HCl are produced in petrochemical plants, coal-fired power plants, and steel smelters, temperature is the main factor affecting the corrosion of 304 stainless steel pipes. At room temperature, 304 has good corrosion resistance in simulated liquids, but when the temperature rises to 40°C, it is prone to pitting corrosion, and by 60°C, it is fully corroded, with pitted surfaces.

Therefore, 304 is not suitable for use as a material for flue gas desulfurization devices. From both temperature and time perspectives, 2205 duplex stainless steel has good corrosion resistance and is suitable for use as a material for flue gas desulfurization devices.

Conclusion

The above is the corrosion resistance of 304 stainless steel pipe in acidic environments. It can be used in nitric acid environments at 100°C at specific concentrations without corrosion; however, when applied to SO, HCl and other acidic gases and the device temperature reaches 60°C, 304 has been fully corroded. Therefore, in acidic environments, the corrosion resistance of 304 stainless steel pipe should be defined based on temperature and acid concentration.

Thank you for reading our article and we hope it can help you to have a better understanding of the corrosion resistance of 304 stainless steel pipe in acidic environment. If you want to learn more about 304 stainless steel, we would like to advise you to visit Sino Stainless Steel for more information.

As a leading supplier of stainless steel products across the world, Sino Stainless Steel provides customers with high-quality stainless steel pipes, stainless steel strips, stainless steel coils, stainless steel plates, stainless steel sheets, and stainless steel bars at an extremely competitive price.