Development and application of nitrogen-alloyed austenitic stainless steels in Baosteel

In recent years, nitrogen-alloyed stainless steels have been a research hotspot in the field of stainless steel product and technology. Nitrogen-alloyed austenitic stainless steels developed by Baosteel and their applications are introduced. These steels are nitrogen-controlled products 304N and 316LN, nitrogen containing economical products BN series and high-nitrogen stainless steel (HNS) series. The results show that the presence of nitrogen can significantly improve the strength and corrosion resistance of steel produced. By nitrogen alloying, economical austenitic stainless steels with considerably less nickel than 304 can be obtained; the corrosion resistances of these steels are almost the same as 304. Furthermore, by a scientific approach of nitrogen alloying,high-nitrogen steel of 0.8% nitrogen content is fabricated under the non-pressurized conditions,and the pitting potential of this steel is > 1.0 V. At present, nitrogen-alloyed steels developed by Baosteel are widely utilized in the manufacture of cryogenic storage containers,transportation containers, and many household wares.