Corrosion of Constructive Materials in Niobium-containing Melts

The corrosion resistance of nickel, molybdenum and two types of stainless steel (12H18N10T (analog of AISI321) and AISI316L) were investigated in molten salt media. Corrosion tests were carried out in NaCl-KCl equimolar mixture and niobium-containing mixture NaCl-KCl-NbCln employing gravimetric analysis, metallography, potentiometry, polarization and voltametry. It was shown that molybdenum metal is most stable material both in pure alkali chloride and in niobium-containing electrolytes. The corrosion processes of studied materials under inert atmosphere have electrochemical nature.