ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Mater.
Sec. Structural Materials
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmats.2025.1662645
Investigating the High-Temperature Oxidation Mechanisms of Carbon Steel Q275
Provisionally accepted
Rong Zou*
Yong Deng*- School of Quality Inspection and Information Technology, Hunan Labor and Human Resources Vocational College, Changsha, 410100, China, Changsha, China
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This study systematically investigates the high-temperature oxidation behavior of Q275 carbon steel (0.28-0.38C, 0.50-0.80Mn) in the temperature range of 500-700°C through comprehensive thermogravimetric analysis and microstructural characterization. The oxidation kinetics follow a parabolic rate law, with the rate constants exhibiting strong temperature dependence. At 500°C, a dense FeO scale forms with localized carbon retention (up to 8.9 at.%), demonstrating protective behavior. As temperature increases to 600°C, Mn segregation at grain boundaries (3.2 wt.%) leads to the development of lamellar (Mn,Fe)O structures and accelerated oxidation. The most severe degradation occurs at 700°C, where cation vacancy percolation results in a porous FeO layer (35% porosity) overlain by Fe2O3 needles, causing rapid mass gain and eventual spallation. The calculated activation energy of 104.2 kJ/mol confirms cation vacancy diffusion as the rate-limiting step. These findings establish 600°C as the critical temperature limit for uncoated applications, providing essential guidance for material selection and protective strategy development in high-temperature environments.
Keywords: Carbon steels, high-temperature oxidation, oxidation kinetics, Activation energy, Failure mechanisms
Received: 09 Jul 2025; Accepted: 20 Aug 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Zou and Deng. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Rong Zou, School of Quality Inspection and Information Technology, Hunan Labor and Human Resources Vocational College, Changsha, 410100, China, Changsha, China
Yong Deng, School of Quality Inspection and Information Technology, Hunan Labor and Human Resources Vocational College, Changsha, 410100, China, Changsha, China
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