Advantages of stainless steel blades include corrosion resistance and hardness
Stainless steel is an alloy of combined iron, carbon, and chromium. It contains at least 10.5% chromium (Cr) by weight. Some stainless steels contain up to 20% chromium. Chromium is the element that makes stainless steel rust- and corrosion-resistant. This element forms a thin layer of chrome oxide and prevents oxygen from penetrating into the steel to cause corrosion.
Stainless Steel, alloyed with a significant percentage of Chromium, provides excellent corrosion resistance and good hardness and toughness. However, it doesn’t retain an edge as long as Carbon Steel and can be more challenging to sharpen.
Once sharpened, most stainless steel knives will hold an edge longer than standard carbon steel knives. There are however, high-carbon stainless steels that also contain high amounts of vanadium and tungsten to maximize edge retention. These steels are often used to make industrial blades.