As interest in the commercial implementation of additively manufactured (AM) metal components increases, so does the need to understand the corrosion behavior of these materials. AM metals deviate in microstructure and surface quality from traditionally processed metals which impacts their corrosion properties. Currently there are no studies investigating the variation in corrosion behavior for AM components printed on different machines. This work compares the breakdown potential, an indication of stable pit growth and the loss of passivity, from 316L stainless steel samples printed on several machines. A correlation between breakdown potential and the surface microstructure, unique to parts printed on different machines, will be discussed. Additionally, the electrochemical measurements are correlated with salt fog experiments. Finally, pit morphology from accelerated atmospheric corrosion exposures (salt fog and constant humidity/contamination lab exposures) are compared to a real-world exposure (coastal environment) of AM 316L.

SNL is managed and operated by NTESS under DOE NNSA contract DE-NA0003525. SAND2022-4063 A