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What is PREN (Pitting Resistance Equivalent Number)

Published on August 10, 2016

What is Pitting Corrosion?

This is a corrosion that occurs in materials that have protective films. It is

an attack with localized holes on the metal's surface. The attack can
penetrate the metal very rapidly, while some parts of the metal surface
remain free from corrosion.

Pitting is vigorous when the solution on the metal surface contains

chloride, hypochlorite or bromide ions. Other harmful solutions are those
that contain fluorides and iodides, while sulfides and water are known to
enhance the pitting process.

Pitting Corrosion Explained

When metal is exposed, its available electrons are given up, and thus
tiny pits begin to form on the metal surface. This then grows to become
a rapid attack that results in massive damage of the metal. The oxidizing
cat ion of iron, copper and mercury, among others, enables the
formation of pitting even when there is no supply of oxygen in the metal
surface. Stainless steel, chromium, passive iron, cobalt, aluminum,
copper and associated alloys are all prone to pitting corrosion.

Pitting corrosion can be controlled by:

 Use of a more resistant material

 Ensuring that the fluids in contact with the material are either
washed away or are injected at a high velocity
 Reducing the medium's aggressiveness
 Use of cathodic protection
 Avoiding stagnant zones
 Use of appropriate materials for service conditions
 Proper use of inhibitors or control of fluid chemistry
 Use of a coating that will prevent pitting on metal surfaces
 The ability to maintain the protective film of the same material
What does Pitting Resistance Equivalent Number (PREN) mean?

The pitting resistance equivalent number (PREN) is a measure of the

relative pitting corrosion resistance of stainless steel in a chloride-
containing environment. The pitting resistance of stainless steel is
primarily determined by its composition. The elements which have a
significant impact are chromium, molybdenum, and nitrogen. The
formula, which quantifies their respective contribution, is:

PREN = 1 × %Cr + 3.3 × %Mo + 16 × %N

Higher PREN values indicate greater corrosion resistance.

The factor for nitrogen varies according to the source. Some variants of
the equation also include tungsten (W).

PREN values are useful for ranking stainless steel grades according to
their pitting-corrosion resistance. However, this comparison is only
meaningful within the same stainless steel family (austenitic, ferritic,
duplex). PREN cannot be interpreted as an absolute value.

Pitting Resistance Equivalent Number (PREN)

The pitting resistance equivalent number (PREN) is a theoretical way of

comparing the pitting corrosion resistance of various types of stainless
steels based on the chemical compositions of an alloy. To improve the
pitting corrosion resistance of stainless steel, such alloying elements like
molybdenum (Mo) and/or nitrogen (N) are added. To help in the
selection of an appropriate alloy for an application, an equation for the
pitting resistance equivalent number has been developed. The higher
the PREN value is, the more corrosion resistant the steel is.

Steels with PREN values above 32 are considered resistant to seawater

corrosion. Duplex steel with PREN values 40 or above is used in
hydrogen sulfide environments. It is standard in the oil and gas
extraction industries. An exception is stainless steels with molybdenum
content equal to or above 1.5%; these may have a PREN value 30 or
more. In these cases the PREN value takes into account tungsten (W) in
the alloy and is defined with the formula:

PREN = 1 × %Cr + 3.3 ( %Mo + 0.5 × %W ) + 16 × %N

Selection of the appropriate stainless steel grade depends primarily on

the corrosiveness of the application environment and the application's
mechanical property requirements. When more than one alloy meets
these requirements, other factors that must be considered include:

 Physical properties
 Fabricability
 Availability
 Cost

PREN can change depending on the individual elements in the steel or

alloy steel composition.

Studies of corrosion failures of stainless steel have indicated that pitting

and crevice corrosion types are major problems, and together account
for perhaps 25% of all corrosion failures. One reason why pitting
corrosion is so serious is that once a pit is initiated there is a strong
tendency for it to continue to grow, even though the majority of the
surrounding steel is still untouched.

Here is a chart. Remember that this is for comparison sake only and not
guaranteed for any specific application: