A new austerritic chromium-based material alloyed with nominally (wt. %) 33 Cr, 32 Fe, 31 Ni, 1.6 Mo, 0.6 Cu and 0.4 N, having a pitting resistance equivalent of 50, has been developed recently, The alloy exhibits excellent local corrosion resistance in chloride-bearing media. When tested in 10% FeCl3 .6 H20 (pH1) solution, a critical pitting temperature of 85°C (185°F) was determined. Low segregation in the matching weld metal means that the critical pitting temperature of a 5 mm PAW weld seam is only 10°C (18°F) lower. Potentiostatic corrosion tests in artificial seawater at 0.3 V (SCE) with additions of 0.5 mol NaCl reveal no pitting corrosion at 85°C, and crevice corrosion in artificial seawater at 0.3 V (SCE) has not been observed at temperatures below 55°C (131°F). In saturated CaCl2 solutions at 125°C (257°F) under constant load conditions the resistance to stress corrosion cracking of Alloy 33 is superior even to that of Alloy 926 (UNS N08926), The combination of excellent corrosion resistance to a broad variety of media with high yield strength, 30 %. above that of the nitrogen-alloyed 6 % Mo stainless steels, not only offers a cost-effective rdtemative to higher-cost nickel alloys, but also allows for light weight structures in the Offshore Industry. Alloy 33 (UNS R20033) has been approved by ASME and VdTUV for pressure vessels in the temperature range of -196°C (-321°F) to 450°C (842°F), and can be manufactured to
all semi-finished products used in the marine and chemical industries.
Keywords: AIIoy 33, UNS R20033, local corrosion, stress corrosion, seawater corrosioq chloride bearing waters, offshore industry, marine industry