High temperature oxidation of austenitic stainless steels: effect of sulfur content on scale adhesion

Two austenitic stainless steels, AISI 304L and AISI 303, containing 0.025 and 0.249 wt%S were oxidized in thermobalance at 1000°C for 50h. The chemical composition and the crystallographic structure of the oxide scales were investigated by Raman spectroscopy. Adhesion of oxide scales was tested by SEM in situ tensile tests. A correlation between the specific mass change, the chemistry, the microstructure and the adhesion properties is made and results are discussed in relation with sulphur concentration in the alloy.