Nitrogen in stainless martensitic steels has a beneficial influence on the mechanical as well as on the chemical properties. However the effect of nitrogen is limited due to the rather low solubility of this element. A special alloy development in combination with a pressurized melting technique lead to distinctly higher nitrogen contents. Stainless martensitic steels containing high nitrogen contents are manufactured by VSG today on an industrial scale using the PESR-process (Pressurized Electroslag Remelting). Depending on special applications these steels are available with different chemical analysis under the trade mark CRONIDUR.

The basic composition of all CRONIDUR-alloys consists of about 15% Chromium, 1% Molybdenum, 0.15 to 0.35% Carbon and 0.20 to 0.40% Nitrogen. The combination of Cr + Mo + N leads to a superior corrosion resistance of these HNS-steels (HNS: High Nitrogen Steels) in comparison to similar carbon based alloys. Focused on applications with a required minimum hardness of 58 HRC, like stainless bearings or screw shafts, the C+N-content is tuned between 0.60 to 0.80% (Brand: CRONIDUR 30). Additions of max. 0.3% Vanadium and 0.1% Niobium qualifies the brand CRONIDUR 20 for enhanced temperature applications like turbine disks or blades.