This article presents an overview of the developments in stainless steels made since the 1990s. Some of the new applications that involve the use of stainless steel are also introduced. A brief introduction to the various classes of stainless steels, their precipitate phases and the status quo of their production around the globe is given first. The advances in a variety of subject areas that have been made recently will then be presented. These recent advances include (1) new findings on the various precipitate phases (the new J phase, new orientation relationships, new phase diagram for the Fe–Cr system, etc.); (2) new suggestions for the prevention/mitigation of the different problems and new methods for their detection/measurement and (3) new techniques for surface/bulk property enhancement (such as laser shot peening, grain boundary engineering and grain refinement). Recent developments in topics like phase prediction, stacking fault energy, superplasticity, metadynamic recrystallisation and the calculation of mechanical properties are introduced, too. In the end of this article, several new applications that involve the use of stainless steels are presented. Some of these are the use of austenitic stainless steels for signature authentication (magnetic recording), the utilisation of the cryogenic magnetic transition of the sigma phase for hot spot detection (the Sigmaplugs), the new Pt-enhanced radiopaque stainless steel (PERSS) coronary stents and stainless steel stents that may be used for magnetic drug targeting. Besides recent developments in conventional stainless steels, those in the high-nitrogen, low-Ni (or Ni-free) varieties are also introduced. These recent developments include new methods for attaining very high nitrogen contents, new guidelines for alloy design, the merits/demerits associated with high nitrogen contents, etc.

Recent developments in stainless steels

In the area of materials science, corrosion of biomaterials is of paramount importance as biomaterials are required for the survival of the human beings suffering from acute heart diseases, arthritis, osteoporosis and other joint complications. The present article discusses various issues associated with biological corrosion of different kinds of implants used as cardio stents, orthopedic and dental implants. As the materials used for these implants are manifold starting from metallic materials such as stainless steel (SS), cobalt chromium, titanium and its alloys, bioceramics, composites and polymers are in constant contact with the aggressive body fluid, they often fail and finally fracture due to corrosion. The corrosion behavior of various implants and the role of the surface oxide film and the corrosion products on the failure of implants are discussed. Surface modification of implants, which is considered to be the best solution to combat corrosion and to enhance the life span of the implants and longevity of the human beings is dealt in detail and the recent advances in the coating techniques which make use of the superior properties of nanomaterials that lead to better mechanical properties and improved biocompatibility are also presented.

Biomedical Implants: Corrosion and its Prevention - A Review~!2009-12-22~!2010-01-20~!2010-05-25~!

A Review on Biomedical Titanium Alloys: Recent Progress and Prospect

Corrosion and surface modification on biocompatible metals: A review.

Revisiting fundamental welding concepts to improve additive manufacturing: From theory to practice

The excellent combination of strength and corrosion resistance in duplex stainless steels (DSS) is due to their strict composition control and microstructural balance. The ferrite–austenite ratio is often upset in DSS weld metals owing to the rapid cooling rates associated with welding. To achieve the desired ferrite–austenite balance and hence properties, either the weld metal composition and/or the heat input is controlled. In the current work, a low heat input process viz., EBW and another commonly employed process, gas tungsten-arc welding have been employed for welding of DSS with and without nickel enhancement. Results show that (i) chemical composition has got a greater influence on the ferrite–austenite ratio than the cooling rate, (ii) and even EBW which is considered an immature process in welding of DSS, can be employed provided means of filler addition could be devised.

Effect of weld metal chemistry and heat input on the structure and properties of duplex stainless steel welds

The present work deals with evaluation of corrosion behaviour of electrodeposited nanocrystalline Ni–W and Ni–Fe–W alloys. Corrosion behaviour of the coatings deposited on steel substrates was studied using polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy techniques in 3.5% NaCl solution while their passivation behaviour was studied in 1N sulphuric acid solution. The corrosion resistance of Ni–W alloys increased with tungsten content up to 7.54 at.% and then decreased. In case of Ni–Fe–W alloys it increased with tungsten content up to 9.20 at.% and then decreased. The ternary alloy coatings exhibited poor corrosion resistance compared to binary alloy coatings due to preferential dissolution of iron from the matrix. Regardless of composition all the alloys exhibited passivation behaviour over a wide range of potentials due to the formation of tungsten rich film on the surface.

Corrosion behaviour of electrodeposited nanocrystalline Ni–W and Ni–Fe–W alloys

The present work involves synthesis, characterization and evaluation of hardness and sliding wear resistance of electrodeposited nanocrystalline Ni–W alloys. Crystallite size reduced with an increase in current density due to an increase in the W content. Ni–W alloy with 9.33 at.% W plated at 75 °C exhibited the maximum hardness of 638 HV. Alloys plated at 75 °C followed direct Hall–Petch relation. However, alloys plated at 85 °C exhibited an inverse Hall–Petch relation below a crystallite size of 15 nm. Wear resistance of alloys plated at 75 °C increased due to an increase in hardness with a reduction in the crystallite size up to 20 nm. It reduced due to brittle fracture of the coating below 20 nm. Wear resistance of alloys plated at 85 °C increased with a reduction in the crystallite size in the direct Hall–Petch region and decreased in the inverse Hall–Petch region. Ni–W coatings with 6–8 at.% W exhibited superior wear resistance.

Synthesis and evaluation of hardness and sliding wear resistance of electrodeposited nanocrystalline Ni–W alloys

With the increasing trend in the use of light-weight functional material in emerging industrial applications, understanding the fabrication of aluminum–boron carbide (ABC) composite is becoming needful. In this context ABC composites up to 25 wt.% boron carbide (B 4 C) particulate reinforcement in alumnium 1100 matrix were prepared at 873 K and the resulting microstructure and physico-mechanical properties were studied. Dark-field images showed the continued existence of porosities. The density and electrical conductivity decreased from 2.52% to 1.8% and from 48% to 11% of the International Annealed Copper Standard, respectively. There was an 11-fold increase in hardness with 25 wt.% B 4 C addition. Although the flexure strength of the composite decreased because of transition in formation of phases at grain boundaries from ternary Al–B–C to binary Al–B, growth of Al–B and retention of boron carbides, the flexure modulus showed up to 8 times improvement with increased fraction of reinforcement. Fractographs revealed extensive damage to grain boundaries because of generated shear and particle pull-out. The tendency for brittle fracture increased with higher reinforcement fractions. The study forms the basis to commercialise ABC composites for required applications, and it is concluded that even though uncoated boroncarbide reinforcements embrittle the aluminum matrix in as-reinforced condition, improvement in other as discussed properties is significant. The study also indicates that the ductility of the metal matrix composite (MMC) may be improved by increasing the interfacial bonding and decreasing the overall porosity contents of the composite.

Boron carbide-reinforced alumnium 1100 matrix composites: Fabrication and properties

Effect of nickel and nitrogen addition on the microstructure and mechanical properties of power beam processed duplex stainless steel (UNS 31803) weld metals

S.K. Seshadri

Papers

Effect of weld metal chemistry and heat input on the structure and properties of duplex stainless steel welds

Corrosion behaviour of electrodeposited nanocrystalline Ni–W and Ni–Fe–W alloys

Synthesis and evaluation of hardness and sliding wear resistance of electrodeposited nanocrystalline Ni–W alloys

Boron carbide-reinforced alumnium 1100 matrix composites: Fabrication and properties

Effect of nickel and nitrogen addition on the microstructure and mechanical properties of power beam processed duplex stainless steel (UNS 31803) weld metals