Publication date: 29 January 2016
Source:Thin Solid Films, Volume 599
Author(s): Y. Gui, Z.J. Zheng, Y. Gao
The structure and compactness of the passive films on nanocrystalline (NC) and coarse crystalline (CC) 304 stainless steels (SSs) are investigated. A bi-layer passive film composed of an inner Cr2 O3 -rich layer and an outer Fe2 O3 -rich layer is obtained on both NC and CC 304SSs. The lower oxide formation potential U ox (Cr) of chromium causes the Cr2 O3 -rich inner layer to form initially, and when the surface potential of the passive film increases due to Cr2 O3 formation, Fe2 O3 with a higher formation potential U ox (Fe) forms and predominates in the outer layer as a result of the higher diffusion rate of Fe than that of Cr across the inner layer. Compared with the CC-304SS, the inner layer of the passive film on the NC-304SS possesses a higher Cr2 O3 content, which is attributed to the greater nucleation sites and faster growth rate of Cr2 O3 in NC-304SS and is believed to be responsible for the higher compactness of the passive film on NC-304SS.
Source:Thin Solid Films, Volume 599
Author(s): Y. Gui, Z.J. Zheng, Y. Gao
