X80 steel has great risk of corrosion in high voltage direct current (HVDC) interference cases. In this study, the anodic polarization behavior of X80 steel under high potential and current density in Na₂SO₄ solution was investigated. The I × R drop was eliminated using current interrupt technique during the potentiodynamic measurement. Therefore, the real polarization curve was obtained. The corrosion behavior was investigated by galvanostatic polarization, scanning electron microscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The results show a new form of passivation route. The steel dissolved actively below -0.388 VSCE, then became partly passivated from -0.388 to 1.448 VSCE, and fully passivated above 1.448 VSCE. The passive film was formed containing Fe₂O₃ and FeOOH, and resistant to SO₄2- ions. It not only blocked the direct dissolution of steel, but also facilitated oxygen evolution. The corrosion rates of steel samples decreased after the passivation.
Keywords: HVDC interference; X80 steel; corrosion; passivation; polarization behavior; transpassivation.