The effects of cold work on the incipient pitting morphology evolution of 304L stainless steels

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of cold work on the incipient pitting corrosion of 304L stainless steels (304L SS). The as-received (0%-CW) and 20% cold-worked (20%-CW) 304L specimens were corrosion-tested in a salt spray system with a solution of 3.5% simulated seawater for the exposure time ranging from 12, 24, 48, 96 to 192 hrs to characterize the pitting corrosion behavior of 304L SS. Weight gain and microstructures were measured using a microbalance and electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD), respectively. The dimensions of corrosion pits, depth, length and width, were analyzed by Confocal Laser Scanning Microscope (CLSM) to elucidate the pit growth process. The analysis of the rust and pit features revealed that the degree of corrosion is more severe in the 0%-CW specimen than in the 20%-CW specimen.