Influence of Ethanol on Pitting Corrosion Behavior of Stainless Steel for Bioethanol Fermentation Tanks

The role of ethanol (C₂H₅OH) in pitting corrosion behavior of AISI 316L austenitic stainless steel was investigated in aqueous ethanolic solution with chloride. The pitting susceptibility and surface morphology of 316L in a series of ethanol-containing solutions were examined using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), optical microscopy with 3D stitching, immersion tests, and potentiodynamic polarization measurements. Results demonstrated that the ethanol concentration impacted little on the passive film stability while it dramatically influenced the pitting corrosion susceptibility. Corrosion rate of 316L after immersion tests first increased and then decreased as the concentration of ethanol increased from 0 to 10 M in ferric chloride solution. This, however, did not correspond to the breakdown potential which directly decreased from 489 to 249 mV as the water concentration decreased in ethanolic NaCl solutions. The pits density after both immersion and electrochemical tests showed that the initiation of pitting in ethanolic solution tended to occur at multiple points at the same time. The synergy effect on pitting behavior of hydrolysis enhancement and solubility reduction of metal cations due to the introduction of ethanol has also been discussed.