Characteristics of the microstructure of corrosion-resistant cast 24Cr-5Ni-2.5Mo duplex steel after introduction of 0.98, 1.67 and 4.3% Si were described. Based on the test results it has been found that silicon addition introduced to the corrosion-resistant cast two-phase duplex steel significantly reduces austenite content in the alloy matrix. Increasing silicon content in the test alloy to 4.3% has resulted, in addition to the elimination of austenite, also in the precipitation of Si-containing intermetallic phases at the grain boundaries and inside the grains. The precipitates were characterized by varying content of Cr and Mo, indicating the presence in the structure of more than one type of the brittle phase characteristic for this group of materials. The simulation using Thermo-Calc software has confirmed the presence of ferrite in all tested alloys. In the material containing 4.3% Si, the Cr and Si enriched precipitates, such as G phase and Cr3Si were additionally observed to occur.
Cast stainless steel of the Cr-Ni duplex type is used, among others, for the cast parts of pumps and valves handling various chemically
aggressive media. Therefore, the main problem discussed in this article is the problem of abrasion wear resistance in a mixture of SiC and
water and resistance to electrochemical corrosion in a 3% NaCl- H2O solution of selected cast steel grades, i.e. typical duplex cast steel,
high silicon and manganese duplex cast steel, and Cr-Ni austenitic cast steel (type AISI 316L). The study shows that the best abrasion
wear resistance comparable to Ni-Hart cast iron was obtained in the cast duplex steel, where Ni was partially replaced with Mn and N.
This cast steel was also characterized by the highest hardness and matrix microhardness among all the tested cast steel grades. The best
resistance to electrochemical corrosion in 3% NaCl- H2O solution showed the cast duplex steel with high content of Cr, Mo and N. The
addition of Ni plays rather insignificant role in the improvement of corrosion resistance of the materials tested.