Hydrogen-water vapor pretreatment of Fe-Cr-Al alloys
US5294586A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 25, 1992 |
| Grant date | Mar 15, 1994 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 25, 2012 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC C)Chemistry; Metallurgy
- CPC primaryC23C8/02
- WIPO fieldSurface technology, coating
- WIPO sectorChemistry
Abstract
A method is provided for forming a precursor layer of aluminum oxide on a cold-rolled ferritic stainless steel substrate having an aluminum content of less than five weight percent, and more preferably as low as 1.5 weight percent, by exposing the stainless steel to a hydrogen atmosphere containing controlled quantities of water vapor to provide a controlled hydrogen-to-water vapor ratio of less than about 1400. The aluminum can be provided either as a constituent of the ferritic stainless steel chemistry, or it can be provided as a coating on a ferritic stainless steel which contains essentially no aluminum itself. The resulting oxidation environment is extremely oxygen-poor, having a partial pressure of oxygen between about 2.7.times.10.sup.-23 and 1.9.times.10.sup.-18 atmospheres. In addition, the environment has a relatively high water vapor content of up to about 10,000 ppm. The water vapor serves to replenish the environment's oxygen content, through disassociation of the water vapor, as the oxygen becomes depleted as a result of oxidation of the aluminum in the stainless steel. The above process serves as a pretreatment of the ferritic stainless steel's surface, enabling a s…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.