skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Corrosion of steels in absorption heating and refrigeration fluid

Book ·
OSTI ID:128624

Pitting corrosion of carbon steel and crevice corrosion of Type 304 stainless steel in a newly developed working fluid for absorption heating and refrigeration systems were studied. The fluid was a concentrated aqueous solution of mixed lithium salts consisting of LiBr, LiCl, LiI and LiNO{sub 3}. This solution contained NO{sub 3}{sup {minus}} and a small amount of I{sub 2}, the oxidized species of I{sup {minus}}, both of which were able to act as the oxidizing agent for steels. The spontaneous electrode potential of Platinum, E{sub SP}(Pt), in the 60% solution kept at 150 C was +120 mV vs SCE, and when the I{sub 2} was reduced by the addition of NaHSO{sub 3} the E{sub SP}(Pt) was approximately {minus}120 mV. Thus, the fluid forms an oxidizing halide environment that tends to induce localized corrosion on steels. The critical pitting potential, V{sub C, PIT}, of the carbon steel and the critical crevice corrosion potential, E{sub R, CREV}, of Type 304 stainless steel were measured to be {minus}340 {approximately} {minus}310 mV and {minus}180 {approximately} {minus}160 mV respectively. It became apparent that in solutions containing I{sub 2}, the E{sub SP}`s of the steels were nobler than the critical potentials, and that pitting corrosion of carbon steel and crevice corrosion of Type 304 stainless steel occurred violently. However, it became also apparent that both localized corrosions ceased when I{sub 2} was reduced by adding NaHSO{sub 3}. Resistance of the steels to localized corrosion increased with higher concentration of NaHSO{sub 3} and less concentration of NO{sub 3}{sup {minus}}.

OSTI ID:
128624
Report Number(s):
CONF-950304-; TRN: IM9550%%9
Resource Relation:
Conference: Corrosion `95: National Association of Corrosion Engineers (NACE) international annual conference and corrosion show, Orlando, FL (United States), 26-31 Mar 1995; Other Information: PBD: 1995; Related Information: Is Part Of Corrosion/95 conference papers; PB: 5788 p.
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English