Effect of Heat Treatment and Electrochemical Potential on Tribocorrosion Behavior of High-Strength Low-Alloy Ship Mooring Chain Steel

Abstract Steels are widely used in the maritime sector and many industries, and are expected to have different mechanical properties and high strength depending on the place of use. In addition to these features, they are also expected to have extraordinary resistance in different environments. One of these environments is the seawater environment, an environments where corrosive effects are pretty high. Equipment used in these environments is expected to be resistant to such conditions. This study examined the tribocorrosion properties of S355J2 + AR steel, whose mechanical properties were changed by two different heat treatments and which is used for fastening ships and different marine equipment in the open sea. It has been observed that the corrosion resistance of Grade 3 chain, which has better mechanical properties, is lower than that of Grade 2 quality steel. In test environments with only mechanical effects, Grade 3 material with high wear resistance was exposed to more wear in the tribocorrosive condition. In cathodic state tests, adhesive wear such as plowing and grooves, which are purely mechanical wear effects, were observed. In the anodic case, corrosion due to anodic dissolution was detected. According to EDS analysis, Cl elements that have a corrosion-enhancing effect on the wear surface were observed for both steel grades.