Passivation is a non-electrolytic process typically using nitric or citric acid which removes free iron from a stainless steel surface. This forms an inert, protective oxide layer that in turn renders the stainless steel more rust-resistant due to lack of iron to react with atmosphere. During machining manufacturing processes, stainless steel parts may have imperfections […]
What is the best method of passivation?
Have you ever noticed that many day-to-day things seem to get divided into two opposing camps? Things like asking what’s the best computer quickly become the PC versus Mac debate. Phones? iPhone versus Android. So, passivation? Yup, nitric versus citric. There are real advantages to each nitric and citric passivation, but that is a topic for other […]
What’s the difference between nitric and citric passivation?
Both nitric acid and citric acid are effective in passivating many grades of stainless steel, and both methods are described in the industry standards ASTM A967 and AMS 2700. Citric acid passivation offers the following key differences. Compared to nitric acid passivation, citric acid passivation is: Newer More environmentally friendly Safer. In the past, some manufacturers avoided […]