Optimize the corrosion behaviour and mechanical properties of AISI 316 stainless steel under heat treatment and previous cold working

Abstract

Abstract Improving corrosion resistance in alloys made of stainless steel is an important innovation on the petroleum trade. The effect of heat treatments (HT) and cold working on the corrosion behaviour, surface hardness, and microstructure of 316 stainless steel was investigated experimentally. The corrosion environment is seawater and crude oil. The corrosion rates (CRs) were obtained using the mean loss of weight approach, which was then optimised using the Taguchi method. The specimens used in this study are made of 316 stainless steel rod, which is first annealed to obtain the qualities of the raw material before being put through a tensile test to assess the mechanical characteristics of the metal. After cold working, the hardness test, the corrosion test utilising the lost weight method, and the microstructure test are all carried out. By performing these tests, the metal show excellent mechanical properties such as yield stress, tensile stress, and hardness; in the corrosion test, the raw metal show higher resistance in both seawater and crude oil, while in cold working and HT with cold working, samples show higher corrosion The HT samples had the lowest corrosion resistance as the cold working percentage increased. In this work, the input parameters such as ultimate corrosion media, HT and cold work (CW) are optimised utilising a multiple objective optimisation approach that uses weighted grey relational analysis. Two objectives, that are CR and Hardness (H), are simultaneously optimised. We suggested a quantitative approach to establish the weight factors of various responses for grey relational analysis called weighted grey relational analysis. The optimum input parameters were determined using weighted grey relational analysis, and the outcomes showed that HT is the most relevant parameter. Cold working has been observed in association with stress-related twinning and austenite phase deformation, resulting in fast grain splitting and the production of a microstructure that resembles a ribbon composed of austenite and ferrite.