A review of corrosion and protection of alloys in supercritical carbon dioxide power cycles: From the perspectives of corrosion simulation, dynamic simulation to experimental research

The carburization and corrosion resistance of heat-resistant materials are crucial for enhancing the safety of supercritical CO₂ renewable energy power system. Addressing the compatibility issues between heat-resistant materials and supercritical CO₂, this review focuses on material selection, corrosion failure mechanisms, and surface strengthening methods, encompassing both experimental characterization and simulation calculations. The corrosion resistance of heat-resistant materials is predominantly governed by their intrinsic properties, particularly the Cr content. Stress loading aggravates the ion diffusion and carburization rates of heat-resistant materials. Although impurity gases accelerate corrosion rates, temperature remains the primary factor controlling ionic diffusion kinetics. Pre-forming protective oxide layers through surface modification can significantly enhance corrosion resistance. The continuous and dense Cr₂O₃, Al₂O₃ and SiO₂ oxide films hinder the ion diffusion and significantly reduce the carburization and corrosion rates of heat-resistant materials. However, corrosion testing alone provides limited mechanistic insights, whereas computational simulations offer valuable understanding of gas adsorption and initial oxidation behavior in these materials. Machine learning can reduce the influence of test equipment, environment, and operation, improving the systematic and universal applicability of high-temperature corrosion test results. Future research should focus on conducting experiments and simulations of high-temperature corrosion and corrosion fatigue under variable supercritical CO₂ load conditions.