Abstract
The microstructures and corrosion behavior of 1.0wt% Gd-containing neutron-absorbing duplex stainless steel annealed at different temperatures were studied. Results reveal that the content of Gd-containing secondary phase increases with increasing the annealing temperatures to 1080 ℃, and then decreases. In the sample annealed at 1080 ℃, M-Gd (M=Fe, Cr, Ni) intermetallic with M3Gd as the core phase and M12Gd as the shell is the primary secondary phase. In the sample annealed at 1140 ℃, M3Gd phase is dominant. The corrosion behavior of the two annealed steel samples were analyzed in NaCl, HCl and H3BO3 solutions. It is found that the sample annealed at 1140 ℃ has lower corrosion rate. M3Gd is more electrochemically active than M12Gd when the sample is immersed in NaCl and HCl solutions, but more noble in H3BO3 solution.
Development of nuclear industry inevitably results in generation of a large amount of highly radioactive spent nuclear fuel (SNF) waste. During the transport and storage process of SNF, neutron-absorbing structural materials are widely used for the containers, racks and transport part
Fe-based and Ni-based alloys, particularly stainless steels (SSs), are the most prominent candidates for this application. Among them, B-containing SSs have been used widely. However, the shortage of the material is obvious: on the one hand, the limited solubility of B in SSs prevents the produ-ction of alloys with B content more than 2.25wt
The types of metallic M-Gd phases are closely related to compositions and heat-treatment process of the steel matri
Moreover, the corrosion resistance of the steels is also highly influenced by the Gd-containing phases. In Gd-316 SS, (Fe, Cr, Ni)3Gd is usually found along grain boundaries. The precipitation of (Fe, Ni, Cr)3Gd will result in a Cr-rich and Ni-poor zone in the steel, thus destroying the stability of the matri
In the present study, a 1.0wt% Gd-containing duplex SS was prepared. The material was annealed at different temperatures and the secondary phases in these samples were investigated. In addition, the corrosion resistance related to the intermetallics was studied in various aqueous conditions. This research is believed to provide fundamental knowledge for the design and fabrication of Gd-containing alloys used for SNF transport and storage.
The test material was Gd-containing duplex SS produced by vacuum induction melting process. The cast ingot weighted about 20 kg with a diameter about 150 mm. The composition of duplex SSs was determined by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS, 8900 Agilent), and the content of carbon and oxygen was determined by Carbon/Sulfur analyzer (CS844, Leco) and Oxygen/Nitrogen & Hydrogen analyzer (ONH836, Leco), respectively. The chemical composition of the as-cast steel is listed in
Cr | Ni | Mo | Mn | Si | C | O | Gd | Fe |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
23.7 | 8.2 | 1.2 | 1.6 | 0.4 | 0.024 | 0.0034 | 1.0 | Bal. |
In the temperature range between 1060 and 1140 °C, a series of heat-treatment conditions were tested. The samples annealed at 1080 and 1140 °C, named as 1080 and 1140, respectively, for 30 min showed the most pronounced difference in the volume fraction of secondary phases and were finally chosen for investigation. The samples with size of 10 mm×10 mm×10 mm were cut from the center of the obtained duplex SS.
The samples were mechanically ground using SiC abrasive paper from 400# to 2000#, and polished using a water-based diamond suspension containing 2.5 μm particles to obtain a mirror finish. The microstructures of the steel samples were analyzed by scanning electron microscope (SEM, Zeiss-Supra 35). Chemical composition of the secondary phase and matrix was analyzed by energy dispersive spectroscope (EDS) atta-ched to SEM. The phase distribution was characterized using an X-ray diffractometer (XRD) with Cu Kα radiation (Rigaku Ultima IV, Japan), under parameters of 30 kV, 15 mA, λ=0.15406 nm, and 2θ=40°–100°. The area fraction of the secon-dary phase was analyzed using ImageJ software. A Thermo Fisher Talos F200X transmission electron microscope (TEM) was used to determine the crystallographic information of the Gd-containing phases. TEM sample discs with 3 mm in dia-meter were ground using silicon carbide papers, then dimpled and finally thinned by ion-milling system Gatan PIPS 695.
Potentiodynamic polarization tests were carried out with an electrochemical workstation (Gamry Reference 600+). The standard three-electrode system was used with the saturated calomel electrode as the reference electrode, the platinum electrode as the auxiliary electrode, and the packaged sample as the working electrode. The sample (10 mm×10 mm×1 mm) for the working electrode was connected to Cu wire and cold mounted by epoxy resin. The exposed area of the working electrode was controlled to 1 c
Corrosion behavior of the Gd-containing duplex SSs was examined through potentiodynamic polarization tests. For the polarization tests, 0.1 μg/L NaCl solutio
In addition, the corrosion resistance of the samples was also studied by immersion tests in NaCl, HCl and H3BO3 solutions. The steel samples were mechanically ground by SiC abrasive paper up to 2000#, and polished by a water-based diamond suspension containing 2.5 μm particles to obtain a mirror finish. After corrosion tests, the corrosion morphologies were examined by SEM.
Potentiodynamic polarization test | Immersion test |
---|---|
0.1 μg/L NaCl, 25±1 °C | 0.1 μg/L NaCl, 40±1 °C, 10 h |
0.36 mol/L HCl, 25±1 °C | 0.36 mol/L HCl, 40±1 °C, 4 h |
H3BO3 (B content: 2.7×1 |
H3BO3 (B content: 2.7×1 |
The as-cast Gd-containing duplex SS and the samples annealed at 1080 and 1140 ℃ for 30 min were firstly analyzed by XRD, as shown in

Fig.1 XRD patterns of as-cast steel and annealed samples
SEM-BSE images of the steels are displayed in

Fig.2 SEM-BSE images of as-cast steel (a, d), sample 1080 (b, e), and sample 1140 (c, f)
According to

Fig.3 Area fractions of Gd-containing particles in the steel annealed at different annealing temperatures

Fig.4 Quantitative analysis on area fractions of Gd-containing phases (a) and matrix (b) in the three steel samples
To determine the chemical composition of the Gd-containing compounds, EDS analysis was performed on each sample. The constituent elements and atomic ratio of the two secondary phases and matrix are given in
Position | wt% | at% | Atomic ratio of (Fe+Ni+Cr)/Gd | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Fe | Ni | Cr | Gd | Fe | Ni | Cr | Gd | ||
Core | 17.84 | 36.98 | 3.04 | 46.56 | 18.48 | 32.53 | 3.98 | 18.13 | 3.03 |
Shell | 44.90 | 16.33 | 14.03 | 19.53 | 44.91 | 11.59 | 16.69 | 6.31 | 11.59 |
α-ferrite | 62.46 | 7.99 | 22.78 | - | 53.22 | 6.47 | 20.85 | - | - |
γ-austenite | 61.09 | 5.73 | 25.85 | - | 51.07 | 4.56 | 23.21 | - | - |
To determine the crystallographic structures of the two Gd-containing intermetallics, the steel samples were characterized by TEM.

Fig.5 TEM image of dual-phase compound (a); SAED patterns of M12Gd (b) and M3Gd (c) phases

Fig.6 TEM image (a) and corresponding EDS mappings of a dual-phase intermetallic marked by rectangle in Fig.6a (b)
Since the compositional and structural inhomogeneity in the as-cast steel often induce the uncertainty of corrosion data, only the annealed steel samples were tested and compared in this section. Potentiodynamic polarization curves of the annealed SS measured in a 0.1 μg/L NaCl solution are shown in

Fig.7 Potentiodynamic polarization curves of annealed steels in different solutions: (a) 0.1 μg/L NaCl, (b) 0.36 mol/L HCl, and (c) H3BO3 (B content: 2.7×1
The corrosion potential Ecorr, corrosion current Icorr and the calculated corrosion rate Vcorr are summarized in
Sample | Ecorr/VSCE | Icorr/A·c | Vcorr/g· |
---|---|---|---|
1080 in NaCl solution | -0.182 |
4.148×1 |
2.887×1 |
1140 in NaCl solution | -0.146 |
1.023×1 |
0.712×1 |
1080 in HCl solution | -0.386 |
4.073×1 | 0.281 |
1140 in HCl solution | -0.376 |
2.634×1 | 0.183 |
1080 in H3BO3 solution | -0.042 |
6.501×1 |
4.331×1 |
1140 in H3BO3 solution | 0.091 |
2.153×1 |
1.432×1 |
To evaluate the practical corrosion resistance of the duplex SS, it was also tested in H3BO3 (B=2.7×1
The corrosion morphologies of the alloys subjected to immersion tests in various solutions were characterized by SEM.

Fig.8 SEM images of corrosion morphologies of annealed steels immersed in 0.1 μg/L NaCl solution at 40 °C for 10 h: (a‒b) sample 1080; (c‒d) sample 1140

Fig.9 SEM images of corrosion morphologies of annealed steels immersed in 0.36 mol/L HCl solution at 40 ℃ for 4 h: (a‒b) sample 1080; (c‒d) sample 1140
The corroded surface morphology of the two alloys immersed in H3BO3 (B content: 2.7×1

Fig.10 SEM images of corrosion morphologies of annealed steels immersed in H3BO3 solution (B content: 2.7×1
1) Two types of Gd-containing phases, M3Gd and M12Gd, are identified in Gd-containing duplex stainless steels. As the annealing temperature increases, the content of Gd-containing phases increases firstly and then decreases. Core-shell structured M-Gd intermetallics and the Gd-rich phase (M3Gd) are dominant secondary phases in the sample 1080 and sample 1140, respectively.
2) The corrosion rate of the steels is related to the content of M-Gd intermetallics. The sample 1140 shows better corrosion resistance than the sample 1080.
3) M3Gd phase is more electrochemically active than M12Gd in NaCl and HCl solutions, but more noble in H3BO3 solutions.
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