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 Low carbon steel (mild steel) is the most commonly used engineering
material. It has good tensile strength and ductility.
 Not resistant to concentrated sulfuric acid and caustic alkalies but
suitable for use with most organic solvents, except chlorinated solvents.
 Susceptible to stress-corrosion cracking in certain environments.
 The high silicon irons (14 to 15 per cent Si) have a high resistance to
mineral acids, except hydrofluoric acid. They are particularly suitable
for use with sulfuric acid at all concentrations and temperatures. They
are, however, very brittle.

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 Commonly used corrosion resistant materials in the chemical

industry.
 The chromium content must be above 12%.
 Nickel is added to improve the corrosion resistance in non-oxidizing
environments.

1. Ferritic: 13 – 20% Cr, < 0.1% C, with no nickel

2. Austenitic: 18 – 20% Cr, > 7% Ni
3. Martensitic: 12 – 10% Cr, 0.2 to 0.4% C, up to 2% Ni

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Type Description
304 (18/8 stainless steel) The most generally used stainless
steel. It contains the minimum Cr and Ni that give a stable
austenitic structure.
The carbon content is low enough for heat treatment not to be
normally needed
with thin sections to prevent weld decay.
304L Low-carbon version of type 304 (<0.03% C) used for thicker
welded
sections, where carbide precipitation would occur with type
304.
321 A stabilized version of 304, stabilized with titanium to prevent
carbide
precipitation during welding. It has a slightly higher strength
than 304L and is
more suitable for high-temperature use.

Type Description
347 Stabilized with niobium
316 In this alloy, molybdenum is added to improve the corrosion
resistance
in reducing conditions, such as in dilute sulfuric acid and, in
particular, to
solutions containing chlorides.
316L A low-carbon version of type 316, which should be specified if
welding
or heat treatment is liable to cause carbide precipitation in type
316.
309/310 Alloys with a high chromium content, to give greater resistance
to oxidation at high temperatures. Alloys with greater than 25%
Cr aresusceptible to embrittlement due to sigma phase formation
at temperatures above
5008C.

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Austenitic stainless steel have greater strength than the plain carbon steels.

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 The higher the alloying content, the better the corrosion resistance over a wide range of
conditions, strongly to reducing, but the higher cost.

Ranking in order of increasing corrosion resistance

Type 304 304L 321 316 316L 310
Rank 1.0 1.1 1.1 1.25 1.3 1.6

 Intergranular corrosion (weld decay) and stress corrosion cracking are problems
associated with the use of stainless steels and must be considered when selecting types
suitable for use in a particular environment.
 In general, stainless steels are used for corrosion resistance when oxidizing conditions
exist.
 Special types, or other high nickel alloys, should be specified if reducing conditions are
likely to occur.

 Super austenitic, high nickel stainless steels containing between 29

to 30% nickel and 20% chromium have a good resistance to acids
and acid chlorides. They are more expensive than the lower alloy
content, 300 series, of austenitic stainless steels.
 Duplex and super-duplex stainless steels contain high percentages
of chromium.
 They have a better corrosion resistance than the austenitic stainless
steels and are less susceptible to stress corrosion cracking.

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 The pure metal (>99%) is not generally used for chemical plants, its
alloys being preferred for most applications.
 For equipment handling caustic alkalis at temperatures above that at
which carbon steel could be used.
 Nickel is not subject to corrosion cracking like stainless steel.

 Classic nickel-copper alloy with the metals in the ratio 2:1. is

probably the most commonly used alloy for chemical plants.
 Has good mechanical properties up to 500 oC.
 Not susceptible to stress corrosion cracking in chloride solutions.
 Good resistance to dilute mineral acids and can be used in reducing
conditions, where the stainless will be unsuitable.
 For handling alkalis, organics acids and salts, and sea water.

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 Inconel (typically 76% Ni, 7% Fe, 15% Cr) is used primarily for acid
resistance at high temperatures.
 Maintains its strength at elevated temperature and is resistant to
furnace gases, if sulfur free.
 Not suitable for use in sulfidizing environments.
 Nickel alloys with higher chromium content such as Incoloy 800 (21%
Cr) and RA-33 (25% Cr) have better oxidation resistance at higher
temperatures.

 Hastelloy covers a range of nickel, chromium, molybdenum

iron alloys that were developed for corrosion resistance to
strong mineral acids, particularly HCl.
 Two main grades:
 Hastelloy B (65% Ni, 28% Mo, 6% Fe)
 Hastelloy C (54% Ni, 17% Mo, 15% Cr, 5% Fe)

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 It has been used traditionally in the food industry, particularly in brewing.

 Used extensively for small-bore pipes and tubes
 The main alloys of copper are the brasses, alloyed with zinc, and the bronzes,
alloyed with tin.
 Attacked by mineral acids, except cold, dilute, unaerated sulfuric acid.
 It is resistant to caustic alkalis, except ammonia, and to many organic acids and
salts.
 The brasses and bronzes have a similar corrosion resistance to the pure metal.
 The cupro-nickel alloys (70% Cu) have a good resistance to corrosion-erosion
and are used for heat exchanger tubes, particularly where sea water is used as
a coolant.

 Has higher resistance to corrosion than its alloys.

 The main structural alloys used are the Duralumin (Dural) range of
aluminum - copper alloys (typical composition 4% Cu, with 0.5% Mg)
which have a tensile strength equivalent to that of mild steel.
 The pure metal can be used as a cladding on Dural plates, to
combine the corrosion resistance of the pure metal with the strength
of the alloy.
 Suitable for concentrated nitric acid, greater than 80%. It is widely
used in the textile and food industries, where the use of mild steel
would cause contamination. It is also used for the storage and
distribution of demineralized water.

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 Soft, ductile material and is mainly used in the form of sheets (as linings) or pipe.
 It has a good resistance to acids, particularly sulfuric.

 Good resistance to chloride solutions, including sea water and wet chlorine.

 Used in other halide services, for example, in liquid phase oxidation processes, such as
the manufacture of terephthalic acid, that use bromide as catalyst or promoter.
 Alloying with palladium (0.15%) significantly improves the corrosion resistance,
particularly to HCl.
 Titanium is being increasingly used for heat exchangers, for both shell and tube, and
plate exchangers, replacing cupro-nickel for use with sea water.

 The corrosion resistance of tantalum is similar to that of glass, and it has been
called a metallic glass.
 Used for special applications, where glass or a glass lining would not be suitable.
Tantalum plugs are used to repair glass-lined equipment.

 Used in the nuclear industry because of their low neutron absorption cross-section and
resistance to hot water at high pressures.
 Good resistance to hot and boiling acids is required: nitric, sulfuric, and particularly
hydrochloric. Its resistance is equivalent to that of tantalum, but zirconium is less
expensive, similar in price to high nickel steel.

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 Used as linings for vessels and equipment handling hydrofluoric acid.

 It is also used for special applications in the food and pharmaceutical industries
where it is vital to avoid contamination of the product.

 Resistant to attack by dilute nitric acid and hot concentrated sulfuric acid, but is
dissolved by aqua regia (a mixture of concentrated nitric and sulfuric acids).
 It is attacked by chlorine and bromine, and it forms an amalgam with mercury.
 It has been used as thin plating on condenser tubes and other surfaces.

 High resistance to oxidation at high temperature.

 One of its main uses has been, in the form of an alloy with
copper, in the manufacture of the spinnerets used in
synthetic textile spinning processes.

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Read Pages 417 -422 from Chemical Engineering

Design by Towler and Sinnott

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