Why do stainless steel pipes undergo solution annealing

Austenitic stainless steel is softened through solution treatment. Generally, the stainless steel pipe is heated to approximately 950–1150℃ and held at that temperature for a period of time. This allows carbides and various alloying elements to fully and uniformly dissolve in the austenite. Then, it is rapidly quenched in water for cooling. Carbon and other alloying elements do not have time to precipitate, resulting in a pure austenitic structure. This process is called solution treatment.

There are three main benefits of solution treatment for stainless steel pipes.

First, it ensures a uniform microstructure and composition. This is especially important for the raw materials because the rolling temperature and cooling rate vary across different sections of hot-rolled wire rod, resulting in inconsistent microstructures. At high temperatures, atomic activity intensifies, the σ phase dissolves, and the chemical composition becomes more uniform. Rapid cooling then yields a uniform single-phase microstructure.

Second, it eliminates work hardening, facilitating further cold working. Through solution treatment, distorted crystal lattices are restored, elongated and broken grains recrystallize, internal stress is eliminated, the tensile strength of the steel pipe decreases, and the elongation increases.

Third, it restores the inherent corrosion resistance of stainless steel. Cold working causes carbide precipitation and lattice defects, reducing the corrosion resistance of stainless steel. Solution treatment restores the corrosion resistance of the steel pipe to its original state.

For stainless steel pipes, the three key factors in solution treatment are temperature, holding time, and cooling rate. The solution temperature is primarily determined by the chemical composition. Generally, grades with higher contents of alloying elements require a correspondingly higher solution temperature. This is especially true for steels with high manganese, molybdenum, nickel, and silicon content; only by increasing the solution temperature to ensure complete dissolution can a softening effect be achieved.

However, in stabilized steels, such as 1Cr18Ni9Ti, when the solution temperature is high, the carbides of the stabilizing elements fully dissolve in the austenite. During subsequent cooling, these carbides precipitate at grain boundaries in the form of Cr23C6, causing intergranular corrosion. To prevent the decomposition and dissolution of the stabilizing carbides (TiC and Nbc), the lower limit of the solution temperature is generally used.

Stainless steel, commonly known as steel that doesn't easily rust, actually possesses both rust resistance and acid resistance (corrosion resistance). The rust resistance and corrosion resistance of stainless steel are due to the formation of a chromium-rich oxide film (passivation film) on its surface. However, rust resistance and corrosion resistance are relative.

Experiments have shown that in weak media such as air and water, and in oxidizing media such as nitric acid, the corrosion resistance of steel increases directly with the increase in chromium content. When the chromium content reaches a certain percentage, the corrosion resistance of the steel undergoes a sudden change, from easily rusting to not easily rusting, and from not corrosion-resistant to corrosion-resistant.