Influence of heat treatment on the corrosion of high speed steel

The corrosion behaviour of M2 high speed steel, as-received as well as heat -treated under different conditions, has been studied in 0.1 M KCl aqueous solution by corrosion potential measurements, Tafel curves and electrochemi cal impedance. Heat treatment leads to an increase of the corrosion resista nce of high speed steel; the higher the tempering temperature after quenchi ng, the higher the corrosion resistance of the steel. X-ray diffraction, en ergy dispersive X-ray analysis and scanning electron microscopy were also u sed to further understand the corrosion behaviour of the different samples. Based on these analyses, the microstructure of the different samples was c orrelated with their corrosion properties.