Biomass derived pyrolysis oils is a renewable energy source that could gradually replace fossil-based oils in multiple industrial sectors. However, bio-oils can cause a corrosion risk for structural steels due to their organic acids and water content. A recent work tested different structural steels in 0.1 molal lactobionic and formic acids, i.e. potential corrosive constituents in common bio-oils, and determined that type 410 stainless steel (11.8 wt% Cr) would be the minimum requirement for corrosion resistance. According to this result, type 410 and three more stainless steels with higher Cr contents (&gt; 12 wt%) were selected in this work for corrosion study in a low ash and low moisture (LALM) bio-oil, produced by National Renewable Energy Laboratory. For a quick evaluation of corrosion behavior, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurements were made for each steel type in the LALM oil. The analysis of impedance data indicted that the bio-oil is more corrosive than formic and lactobionic acids, so a stainless steel with 14.5 wt% Cr is the minimum requirement to avoid corrosion. Currently, EIS measurements are underway for the selected stainless steels in LALM bio-oils added with formic and lactobionic acids, to further investigate the role of the organic acids for the bio-oil corrosivity.

Corrosion behavior of structural stainless steels in LALM biomass pyrolysis oil

ACS Fall 2020 Virtual Meeting

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