304 stainless steel contains approximately 10% nickel, specifically between 8% and 10.5%.
The national standard for 304 stainless steel requires a nickel content of at least 8%.
Nickel is a major alloying element in austenitic stainless steel. Its main function is to strengthen and stabilize austenite, resulting in a fully austenitic structure. This gives the steel a good balance of strength, plasticity, and toughness, as well as excellent hot and cold workability, while also improving the thermodynamic stability of austenitic stainless steel.
The addition of nickel to austenitic stainless steel and the increase in nickel content lead to increased thermodynamic stability. Therefore, austenitic stainless steel exhibits better rust resistance and resistance to oxidizing media. Furthermore, with increasing nickel content, its resistance to reducing media is further improved. It is worth noting that nickel is also one of the few important elements that enhances the resistance of austenitic stainless steel to transgranular stress corrosion in many media.

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