Behavior of Oxide Scale on 9Cr–1Mo Steel Under Varying External Stresses

The effects of different external stresses on the oxidation behavior of9Cr–1Mo steel were investigated. Tensile specimens were subjected tostresses of 11, 20, 28, and 40 MPa and the oxidation behavior was studiedat a temperature of 973 K. The elongation of the specimen was determined byan extensometer. An acoustic-emission unit was employed to monitor theintegrity of the oxide scale. The oxide scale was found to undergo bucklingbefore spalling, in the case of unstressed specimens, and in the case ofthose specimens subjected to a stress up to 28 MPa. The specimen with 40 MPastress showed the development of cracks. The application of external stressup to 28 MPa (average strain rate for 28 MPa stress was1.2 x 10-7 s-1) had a beneficial effect with respectto the adherence of the oxide scale. The specimen with 40 MPa of stress(average strain rate of 5.2 x 10-77 s-1) showedsubstantial weight gain on oxidizing up to 140 hr. The unstressed specimenrevealed enhanced spallation when compared with the stressedones. Investigation by SEM revealed the spalling of the oxide scale when theduration of oxidation was higher than 70 hr at all stress levels employed inthe present investigation. Formation of cracks at 40 MPa exposed fresh areasto oxygen and caused accelerated oxidation. Analysis by energy-dispersiveX-ray spectrometry (EDS) revealed the segregation of chromium at the oxideridges. The segregation of silicon was also significant for the specimensubjected to a stress of 40 MPa. Analysis by XRD clearly revealed thepresence of oxides of chromium and iron (Cr2O3 andFe2O3) and spinel-type oxide (FeCr2O4).