Austenitic stainless steels passivity complexes

The passive film formed on austenitic stainless steel is duplex in nature, consisting of an inner barrier oxide film and an outer deposit of hydroxide or salt film. Passivation takes place by the rapid formation of surface-absorbed hydrated complexes of metals that are sufficiently stable on the alloy surface that further reaction with water enables the formation of a hydroxide phase that rapidly deprotonates to form an insoluble surface oxide film. The three most commonly used austenite stabilizers—nickel, manganese, and nitrogen—all contribute to the passivity. Chromium, a major alloying ingredient, is in itself very corrosion resistant and is foimd in greater abundance in the passive film than iron, which is the major element in the alloy. 

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