At Avesta Research Centre (ARC), Outokumpu has performed corrosion testing years and years to gather information about how our products and grades behave in hydrometallurgical types of environments and to find the limits for their use.

In this special edition of Acom we present data gathered over the years. The first article describes the use of Outokumpu LDX 2101® as a cost-efficient cathode plate for copper refining. This article has been previously published in Materials World in 2009. In the second article we summarize laboratory testing in simulated leaching environments, performed by Outokumpu in both acidic and alkaline environments. Results from field testing are also presented.

The leaching stage is identified as the most aggressive stage in hydrometallurgical processes, so if a suitable stainless steel material can be identified for those environments it is possible to find a grade that works in less aggressive environments.

The second article also includes results from field testing where welded and creviced samples of different stainless steel grades have been placed in an existing plant. The samples are exposed for a certain period of time, after which the corrosion performance is evaluated. Data from field testing is very useful since it shows the corrosion behaviour in a real process.

With all these different pieces put together it is possible to choose an appropriate material for these types of environments. The hydrometallurgical industry is growing as more and more plants are constructed all over the world. One of the critical factors is to choose suitable materials for construction of these plants so the longest life possible is obtained.

Corresponding author of the articles in this issue of acom:
Sophia Ekman
Research Engineer
Avesta Research Centre, Sweden
Email: sophia.ekman(at)outokumpu.com

For more information on acom, please contact the editor:
Jesper Gunnarsson
Avesta Research Centre, Sweden
Email: jesper.gunnarsson(at)outokumpu.com

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