Local reactions of KCl particles with iron, nickel and chromium surfaces

Corrosion of superheaters caused by the deposition and subsequent reaction of alkali chloride containing ashes is one of the main material problems by combustion of biomass for energy conversion. The alkali chloride particles are formed during combustion and transported as aerosol or in the vapor phase within the combustion gas, subsequently sticking on the surface of the metallic tube. The initial reaction between the tube surface and the salt particle plays a major role in the initiation of the corrosion process and, therefore, are studied in detail in this work. The salt particles were locally deposited by means of thermophoresis within an aerosol generator, available at MPIE. Studies on the reaction of KCl particles with iron surfaces showed that a reaction takes place already at 300 degrees C. In N-2-O-2 atmospheres, the attack was very local, whereas the addition of 0.05 vol.% HCl to the reaction gas led to complete coverage of the iron surface with chloride. In contrast, reactions of KCl with nickel and chromium surfaces start to be significant only at 500 degrees C and higher. The paper summarizes the reaction behavior of Fe, Ni and Cr after thermophoretic deposition of KCl particles and subsequent reaction at elevated temperatures.