Corrosion phenomena in liquid metal systems

Liquid metals are used in many industrial sectors: metallurgy, energy, aeronautics. They are mainly used as heat transfer fluids in heat exchanger components (Na, Pb, Pb-Bi, Pb-Li, Ga, Hg) due to their high thermal conductivity, which gives them exceptional heat transfer properties (the heat transfer capability of the fluid will determine the diameters of pipes and piping elements, It is a function of the fluid's thermal mass capacity, while the heat transfer capacity determines the heat exchanger's exchange surfaces, and is a function of the fluid's thermal conductivity [BE 9 570][BE 9 571] ), as baths for producing metallic deposits [M 1 534] on solid parts (e.g., for anti-corrosion coatings: Zn, Al, Sn) or as heat treatment baths (Pb)).

Liquid metals can be corrosive to the solid materials they come into contact with, especially at higher operating temperatures. The materials used are either metallic (mainly iron-based) or refractory. The need to guarantee the service life of structures containing these liquid metals, and to anticipate any component changes that may need to be made, requires an understanding and modeling of corrosion mechanisms. This is all the more essential in the case of the nuclear industry, which uses or plans to use liquid metals as: heat transfer fluids in Generation IV nuclear reactors (Na, Pb) [BN 3 020][BN 3 680] , as tritium blanket and coolant in fusion reactors (Li, Pb-Li)