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Duplex Stainless Steels - A Simplified Guide

Duplex Stainless Steels - A Simple Guide



Duplex stainless steels are becoming more common. They are being offered by all the major
stainless steel mills for a number of reasons:
Higher strength leading to weight saving
Greater corrosion resistance particularly stress corrosion cracking
Better price stability
Lower price

There is a conference on the subject of duplex every 2-3 years where dozens of highly technical
papers are presented. There is a lot of marketing activity surrounding these grades. New grades
are being announced frequently.

Yet, even with all this interest, the best estimates for global market share for duplex are between
1 and 3%. The purpose of this article is to provide a straightforward guide to this steel type. The
advantages and disadvantages will be described.

Principle of Duplex Stainless Steels
The idea of duplex stainless steels dates back to the 1920s with the first cast being made at
Avesta in Sweden in 1930. However, it is only in the last 30 years that duplex steels have begun
to take off in a significant way. This is mainly due to advances in steelmaking techniques
particularly with respect to control of nitrogen content.

The standard austenitic steels like 304 (1.4301) and ferritic steels like 430 are relatively easy to
make and to fabricate. As their names imply, they consist mainly of one phase, austenite or
ferrite. Although these types are fine for a wide range of applications, there are some important
technical weaknesses in both types:

Austenitic low strength (200 MPa 0.2% PS in solution annealed condition), low resistance to
stress corrosion cracking

Ferritic low strength (a bit higher than austenitic, 250 MPa 0.2% PS), poor weldability in thick
sections, poor low temperature toughness

In addition, the high nickel content of the austenitic types leads to price volatility which is
unwelcome to many end users.

The basic idea of duplex is to produce a chemical composition that leads to an approximately
equal mixture of ferrite and austenite. This balance of phases provides the following:
Higher strength The range of 0.2% PS for the current duplex grades is from 400 550
MPa. This can lead to reduced section thicknesses and therefore to reduced weight. This
advantage is particularly significant for applications such as:
o Pressure Vessels and Storage Tanks
o Structural Applications e.g. bridges
Good weldability in thick sections Not as straightforward as austenitics but much better
than ferritics.
Good toughness Much better than ferritics particularly at low temperature, typically
down to minus 50 deg C, stretching to minus 80 deg C.
Resistance to stress corrosion cracking Standard austenitic steels are particularly prone
to this type of corrosion. The kind of applications where this advantage is important
include:
o Hot water tanks
o Brewing tanks
o Process plant
o Swimming pool structures

How the Austenite/Ferrite Balance is Achieved

To understand how duplex steels work, first compare the composition of two familiar steels
austenitic 304 (1.4301) and ferritic 430 (1.4016).
Structure Grade
EN
Number
C Si Mn P S N Cr Ni Mo
Ferritic 430 1.4016 0.08 1.00 1.00 0.040 0.015 - 16.0/18.0 - -
Austenitic 304 1.4301 0.07 1.00 2.00 0.045 0.015 0.11 17.5/19.5 8.0/10.5 -


The important elements in stainless steels can be classified into ferritisers and austenitisers. Each
element favours one structure or the other:

Ferritisers Cr (chromium), Si (silicon), Mo (molybdenum), W (tungsten), Ti (titanium), Nb
(niobium)

Austenitisers C (carbon), Ni (nickel), Mn (manganese), N (nitrogen), Cu (copper)

Grade 430 has a predominance of ferritisers and so is ferritic in structure. Grade 304 becomes
austenitic mainly through the use of about 8% nickel. To arrive at a duplex structure with about
50% of each phase, there has to be a balance between the austenitisers and the ferritisers. This
explains why the nickel content of duplex steels is generally lower than for austenitics.

Here are some typical compositions of duplex stainless steels:
Grade
EN
No/UNS
Type Approx Composition
Cr Ni Mo N Mn W Cu
2101
LDX
1.4162/
S32101
Lean 21.5 1.5 0.3 0.22 5 - -
DX2202
1.4062/
S32202
Lean 23 2.5 0.3 0.2 1.5 - -
RDN
903
1.4482/
S32001
Lean 20 1.8 0.2 0.11 4.2 - -
2304
1.4362/
S32304
Lean 23 4.8 0.3 0.10 - - -
2205
1.4462/
S31803/
S32205
Standard 22 5.7 3.1 0.17 - - -
2507
1.4410/
S32750
Super 25 7 4 0.27 - - -
Zeron
100
1.4501/
S32760
Super 25 7 3.2 0.25 - 0.7 0.7
Ferrinox
255/
Uranus
2507Cu
1.4507/
S32520/
S32550
Super 25 6.5 3.5 0.25 - - 1.5

In some of the recently developed grades, nitrogen and manganese are used together to bring the
nickel content to very low levels. This has a beneficial effect on price stability.

At present, we are still very much in the development phase of duplex steels. Therefore, each
mill is promoting its own particular brand. It is generally agreed that there are too many grades.
However, this is likely to continue until the winners emerge.

Corrosion Resistance of Duplex Steels

The range of duplex steels allows them to be matched for corrosion resistance with the austenitic
and ferritic steel grades. There is no single measure of corrosion resistance. However, it is
convenient to use the Pitting Resistance Equivalent Number (PREN) as a means of ranking the
grades.

PREN = %Cr + 3.3 x %Mo + 16 x %N

The following table shows how the duplex steels compare with some austenitic and ferritic
grades.
Grade
EN
No/UNS
Type
Typical
PREN
430
1.4016/
S43000
Ferritic 18
304
1.4301/
S30400
Austenitic 19
441
1.4509/
S43932
Ferritic 19
RDN
903
1.4482/
S32001
Duplex 22
316
1.4401/
S31600
Austenitic 24
444
1.4521/
S44400
Ferritic 24
316L 2.5
Mo
1.4435 Austenitic 26
2101
LDX
1.4162/
S32101
Duplex 26
2304
1.4362/
S32304
Duplex 26
DX2202
1.4062/
S32202
Duplex 27
904L
1.4539/
N08904
Austenitic 34
2205
1.4462/
S31803/
S32205
Duplex 35
Zeron
100
1.4501/
S32760
Duplex 41
Ferrinox
255/
Uranus
2507Cu
1.4507/
S32520/
S32550
Duplex 41
2507
1.4410/
S32750
Duplex 43
6% Mo
1.4547/
S31254
Austenitic 44


It must be emphasised that this table is only a guide to material selection. It is always important
to assess the suitability of a particular with a full knowledge of the corrosive environment.

Stress Corrosion Cracking (SCC)

SCC is a form of corrosion which occurs with a particular combination of factors:
Tensile stress
Corrosive environment
Sufficiently high temperature. Normally 50 deg C but can occur at lower temperatures
around 25 deg C in specific environments, notably swimming pools.

Unfortunately, the standard austenitic steels like 304 (1.4301) and 316 (1.4401) are the most
susceptible to SCC. The following materials are much less prone to SCC:
Ferritic stainless steels
Duplex stainless steels
High nickel austenitic stainless steels

The resistance to SCC makes duplex steels suitable materials for many processes which operate
at higher temperatures, notably:
Hot water boilers
Brewing tanks
Desalination

Stainless steel structures in swimming pools are known to be prone to SCC. The use of standard
austenitic stainless steels like 304 and 316 is forbidden in this application. The best steels to use
for this purpose are the high nickel austenitic steels such as the 6% Mo grades. However, in
some cases, duplex steels such as 2205 (1.4462) and the superduplex grades can be considered.

Barriers to Using Duplex Steels

The attractive combination of high strength, wide range of corrosion resistance, moderate
weldability would seem to offer great potential for increasing the market share of duplex
stainless steels. However, it is important to understand the limitations of duplex stainless steels
and why they are always likely to be niche players.

The advantage of high strength immediately becomes a disadvantage when considering
formability and machinability. The high strength also comes with lower ductility than austenitic
grades. Therefore, any application requiring a high degree of formability, for example, a sink, is
ruled out for duplex grades. Even when the ductility is adequate, higher forces are required to
form the material, for example in tube bending. There is one exception to the normal rule of
poorer machinability, grade 1.4162.

The metallurgy of duplex stainless steels is much more complex than for austenitic or ferritic
steels. This is why 3 day conferences can be devoted just to duplex! This factor means that they
are more difficult to produce at the mill and to fabricate.

In addition to ferrite and austenite, duplex steels can also form a number of unwanted phases if
the steel is not given the correct processing, notably in heat treatment. Two of the most important
phases are illustrated in the diagram below:
Sigma
phase

475 degree
embrittlement


Both of these phases lead to embrittlement, i.e. loss of impact toughness.

The formation of sigma phase is most likely to occur when the cooling rate during manufacture
or welding is not fast enough. The more highly alloyed the steel, the higher the probability of
sigma phase formation. Therefore, superduplex steels are most prone to this problem.

475 degree embrittlement is due to the formation of a phase called (alpha prime). Although the
worst temperature is 475 deg C, it can still form at temperatures as low as 300 deg C. This leads
to a limitation on the maximum service temperature for duplex steels. This restriction reduces the
potential range of applications even further.
At the other end of the scale, there is a restriction on the low temperature use of duplex stainless
steels compared to austenitic grades. Unlike austenitic steels duplex steels exhibit a ductile-
brittle transition in the impact test. A typical test temperature is minus 46 deg C for offshore oil
and gas applications. Minus 80 deg C is the lowest temperature that is normally encountered for
duplex steels.

Going Further with Duplex Stainless Steels
More detailed information on duplex can be found in:

Practical Guidelines for the Fabrication of Duplex Stainless Steels

Summary of Duplex Characteristics
Twice design strength of austenitic and ferritic stainless steels
Wide range of corrosion resistance to match application
Good toughness down to minus 80 deg C but not genuine cryogenic applications
Particular resistance to stress corrosion cracking
Weldable with care in thick sections
More difficult to form and machine than austenitics
Restricted to 300 deg C maximum
U

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