New understanding on the critical factors determining stability of passive film on Fe-Cr alloy based on aberration-corrected TEM study
Anti-Corrosion Methods and Materials
ISSN: 0003-5599
Article publication date: 11 December 2023
Issue publication date: 2 January 2024
Abstract
Purpose
In recent years, using aberration-corrected transmission electron microscopy, the authors have achieved precisely detecting the structural evolution of passive film as well as its interface zone at atomic scale. The purpose of this paper aims to make a brief review to show the authors’ new understanding and perspective on the issue of critical factors determining stability of passive film of Fe-Cr alloy.
Design/methodology/approach
The introduction of single crystal enabled the authors to obtain a distinct metal/passive film interface and better characterize the structure of the interface region. The authors use aberration-corrected TEM to conduct cross-sectional observation and directly capture the details across the entire film at a high spatial and energy resolution.
Findings
Apart from the passive film itself, the interface zone, including metal/film (Me/F) interface and the adjacent metal side, is also the site which is attacked. Accordingly, the nature of the interface zone, such as microstructure, composition and atomic configuration, is one of the critical factors determining the stability of passive film.
Originality/value
Deciphering the critical factors determining the stability of passive film is of great significance and has been a fundamental issue in corrosion science. Great attention has been paid to the nature of the passive film itself. In contrast, the possible role of the interface between the passive film and the metal is rarely taken into account. Based on the advanced analytical tool with high spatial resolution, the authors have specified the significant role of interface structures on the macro-scale stability of passive film.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
This work is supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 52371071,51971228, 51771212).
Additional information: The authors declare no competing financial interests.
Since submission of this article, the following authors have updated their affiliations: B. Zhang is not at the Institute of Metal Research Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang, China and X.L. Ma is at Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
Citation
Zhang, B., Wei, X.X. and Ma, X.L. (2024), "New understanding on the critical factors determining stability of passive film on Fe-Cr alloy based on aberration-corrected TEM study", Anti-Corrosion Methods and Materials, Vol. 71 No. 1, pp. 20-29. https://doi.org/10.1108/ACMM-09-2023-2891
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
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