Interplay between temperature-dependent strengthening mechanisms and mechanical stability in high-performance austenitic stainless steels

The effects of deformation temperature on the transformation-induced plasticity(TRIP)-aided 304L,twinning-induced plasti-city(TWIP)-assisted 316L,and highly alloyed stable 904L austenitic stainless steels were compared for the first time to tune the mechan-ical properties,strengthening mechanisms,and strength-ductility synergy.For this purpose,the scanning electron microscopy(SEM),electron backscattered diffraction(EBSD),X-ray diffraction(XRD),tensile testing,work-hardening analysis,and thermodynamics calcu-lations were used.The induced plasticity effects led to a high temperature-dependency of work-hardening behavior in the 304L and 316L stainless steels.As the deformation temperature increased,the metastable 304L stainless steel showed the sequence of TRIP,TWIP,and weakening of the induced plasticity mechanism;while the disappearance of the TWIP effect in the 316L stainless steel was also observed.However,the solid-solution strengthening in the 904L superaustenitic stainless steel maintained the tensile properties over a wide temper-ature range,surpassing the performance of 304L and 316L stainless steels.In this regard,the dependency of the total elongation on the de-formation temperature was less pronounced for the 904L alloy due to the absence of additional plasticity mechanisms.These results re-vealed the importance of solid-solution strengthening and the associated high friction stress for superior mechanical behavior over a wide temperature range.

Effect of Chromium-enhanced Diffusivity on Reverted Transformation in Metastable Austenitic Stainless Steels:Theoretical Calculation and Experiment

Effects of nucleation sites and diffusivity enhancement of chromium on reverted transformation of AISI 304 stainless steel during annealing process were investigated.Dynamics calculation revealed that the reverted transformation of strain-inducedα’-martensite→γaustenite could were closely associated with active nucleation sites and diffusivity enhancement of chromium in nanocrystallineα’-martensite.The experimental data and the results were in accordance with 2-grain austenite/α’-martensite junctions calculated theoretically,which could result from high chromium diffusion rate in nanocrystallineα’-martensite.In addition,low temperature is not conducive to reversed transformation,while high temperature and long annealing time will lead to inhomogeneous grain size distribution.

Fabrication of high nitrogen austenitic stainless steels with excellent mechanical and pitting corrosion properties

A series of high nitrogen austenitic stainless steels were successfully developed with a pressurized electroslag remelting furnace. Nitride additives and deoxidizer were packed into the stainless steel pipes, and then the stainless steel pipes were welded on the surface of an electrode with low nitrogen content to prepare a compound electrode. Using Si3N4 as a nitrogen alloying source, the silicon contents in the ingots were prone to be out of the specification range, the electric current fluctuated greatly and the surface qualities of the ingots were poor. The surface qualities of the ingots were improved with FeCrN as a nitrogen alloying source. The sound and compact macrostructure ingot with the maximum nitrogen content of 1.21wt% can be obtained. The 18Cr18Mn2Mo0.9N high nitrogen austenitic stainless steel exhibits high strength and good ductility at room temperature. The steel shows typical ductile-brittle transition behavior and excellent pitting corrosion resistance properties.

Pitting corrosion and crevice corrosion behaviors of high nitrogen austenitic stainless steels

Pitting corrosion and crevice corrosion behaviors of high nitrogen austenitic stainless steels （HNSS） were investigated by electrochemical and immersion testing methods in chloride solution, respectively. The chemical constitution and composition in the depth of passive films formed on HNSS were analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectrum （XPS）. HNSS has excellent pitting and crevice corrosion resistance compared to 316L stainless steel. With increasing the nitrogen content in steels, pitting potentials and critical pitting temperature （CPT） increase, and the maximum, average pit depths and average weight loss decrease. The CPT of HNSS is correlated with the alloying element content through the measure of alloying for resistance to corrosion （MARC）. The MARC can be expressed as an equation of CPT=2.55MARC-29. XPS results show that HNSS exhibiting excellent corrosion resistance is attributed to the enrichment of nitrogen on the surface of passive films, which forms ammonium ions increasing the local pH value and facilitating repassivation, and the synergistic effects of molybdenum and nitrogen.

High Nitrogen Austenitic Stainless Steels Manufactured by Nitrogen Gas Alloying and Adding Nitrided Ferroalloys

A simple and feasible method for the production of high nitrogen austenitic stainless steels involves nitrogen gas alloying and adding nitrided ferroalloys under normal atmospheric conditions. Alloying by nitrogen gas bubbling in Fe-Cr-Mn-Mo series alloys was carried out in MoSi2 resistance furnace and air induction furnace under normal atmospheric conditions. The results showed that nitrogen alloying could be accelerated by increasing nitrogen gas flow rate, prolonging residence time of bubbles, increasing gas/molten steel interfaces, and decreasing the sulphur and oxygen contents in molten steel. Nitrogen content of 0.69% in 18Crl8Mn was obtained using air induction furnace by bubbling of nitrogen gas from porous plug. In addition, the nickel-free, high nitrogen austenitic stainless steels with sound and compact macrostructure had been produced in the laboratory using vacuum induction furnace and electroslag remelting furnace under nitrogen atmosphere by the addition of nitrided alloy with the maximum nitrogen content of 0.81%. Pores were observed in the ingots obtained by melting and casting in vacuum induction furnace with the addition of nitrided ferroalloys and under nitrogen atmosphere. After electroslag remelting of the cast ingots, they were all sound and were free of pores. The yield of nitrogen increased with the decrease of melting rate in the ESR process. Due to electroslag remelting under nitrogen atmosphere and the consequential addition of aluminum as deoxidizer to the slag, the loss of manganese decreased obviously. There existed mainly irregular Al2O3 inclusions and MnS inclusions in ESR ingots, and the size of most of the inclusions was less than 5 um. After homogenization of the hot rolled plate at 1 150℃ × 1 h followed by water quenching, the microstructure consisted of homogeneous austenite.

Microstructural evolution and mechanical properties of aging high nitrogen austenitic stainless steels

The microstructural evolution of 18Crl 8Mn2Mo0.77N high nitrogen austenitic stainless steel in aging treatment was investigated by optical microscopy （OM）, scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, and transmission electron microscopy （TEM）. The results show that hexagonal intergranular and cellular Cr2N with a=0.478 nm and c=0.444 nm and body-centered cubic intermetaUic X phase with a=0.892 nm precipitate gradually in the isothermal aging treatment. The matrix nitrogen depletion due to the intergranular Cr2N precipitation induces the decay of Vickers hardness, and the formation of cellular Cr2N and X phase causes the increase in the values. The impact toughness presents a monotonic decrease and SEM morphologies show the leading brittle intergranular fracture. The tensile strength and elongation deteriorate obviously except for the sample aged for 1 h in yield strength. Stress concentration occurs when the matrix dislocations pile up at the pre- cipitation and matrix interfaces, and the interracial dislocations may become precursors to the misfit dislocations, which can form small cleavage steps and accelerate the formation of cracks.

Influence of chemical composition and cold deformation on aging precipitation behavior of high nitrogen austenitic stainless steels

The influence of chemical composition and cold deformation on aging precipitation behavior of 18Cr-16Mn-2Mo-I.IN （HNS-A）, 18Cr-16Mn-I.3N （HNS-B）, 18Cr-18Mn-2Mo-0.96N （HNS-C） and 18Cr-18Mn-2Mo-0.77N （I-INS-D） high nitrogen austenitic stainless steels was investigated. The results show that the ＂nose＂ temperatures and incubation periods of the initial time-temperature-precipitation （TTP） curves of aged HNSs are found to be 850 ℃, 60 s; 850 ℃, 45 s; 850 ℃, 60 s and 900 ℃, 90 s, respectively. Based on the analysis of SAD patterns, the coarse cellular Cr2N precipitate which presents a lamellar structure has a hexagonal structure of a=0.478 nm and c=0.444 nm. The Z phase corresponding to a composition of Fe36Cr^2Mo10, is determined to be a body-centered cubic structure ofa=0.892 nm. The precipitating sensitivity presents no more difference with the nitrogen content increasing from 0.77% to 0.96%, but exhibits so obviously that the cellular precipitates nearly overspread the whole field. The addition of Mo element can restrain the TTP curves moving left and down, which means decreasing the sensitivity of aging precipitation. With increasing the cold deformation, the sensitivity of precipitation increases obviously.

Development and application of nitrogen-alloyed austenitic stainless steels in Baosteel

In recent years,nitrogen-alloyed stainless steels have been a research hotspot in the field of stainless steel product and technology. Nitrogen-alloyed austenitic stainless steels developed by Baosteel and their applications are introduced. These steels are nitrogen-controlled products 304 N and 316 LN,nitrogen containing economical products BN series and high-nitrogen stainless steel（ HNS） series. The results show that the presence of nitrogen can significantly improve the strength and corrosion resistance of steel produced. By nitrogen alloying,economical austenitic stainless steels w ith considerably less nickel than 304 can be obtained; the corrosion resistances of these steels are almost the same as 304. Furthermore,by a scientific approach of nitrogen alloying,high-nitrogen steel of0. 8% nitrogen content is fabricated under the non-pressurized conditions,and the pitting potential of this steel is ＆gt;1. 0 V. At present,nitrogen-alloyed steels developed by Baosteel are w idely utilized in the manufacture of cryogenic storage containers,transportation containers,and many household w ares.

EFFECTS OF MODIFICATION OF THE CARBIDE CHARACTERISTICS THROUGH GRAIN BOUNDARY SERRATION ON CREEP-FATIGUE LIFE IN AUSTENITIC STAINLESS STEELS

Modification of the carbide characteristics through the grain boundary serration is investigated, using an AISI 316 and 304 stainless steels. In both steels, triangular carbides were observed at straight grain boundaries while planar carbides were observed at the serrated grain boundaries. The serrated grain boundary energy is observed to be much lower than that of the straight one. Therefore, the carbide morphology is found to be changed from triangular to planar along the serrated boundary to reduce the interfacial energy between the carbide and the matrix. The creep-fatigue properties of these steels at 873K have been investigated. The creep-fatigue life of the sample with planar carbide at the serrated grain boundary was found to be much longer than that with triangular carbide at the straight one. These results imply that the planar carbides with lower interfacial energy have higher cavitation resistance, resulting in the retardation of cavity nucleation and growth to increase creep-fatigue life.

Hydrogen-induced Cracking of Weld Metal of Austenitic Stainless Steels

For 308L and 347L weld metals of austenitc stainless steels (ASS), hydrogen induced cracking (HIC) occurred during dynamically charging under constant load. The threshold stress intensity for HIC, Km, decreased linearly with the logarithm of the concentration of diffusible hydrogen C0 in the weld metals and the rolled plate of type 304L ASS, i.e., KIH=85.2-10.71nC0 (308L), KIH=76.1-9.31n C0(347L), and KIH=91.7-10.11nC0(304L). The fracture mode for HIC in the three type of ASS changed from ductile to brittle with the decrease in the applied stress intensity KI or/and the increase in C0. The boundary line between ductile and brittle fracture surfaces was KI-54+25exp(-C0/153)=0.

Effect of strain-induced martensitic phase transformation on the formability of nitrogen-alloyed metastable austenitic stainless steels

Strain-induced martensitic phase transformation and its influence on the forrnability of newly developed nitrogen-alloyed metastable austenitic stainless steels were systematically investigated. Yield strength for the as- received steels bearing low nickel content was around 300 MPa and their elongation ratios varied from 55.2% to 61.7%. Erichsen numbers of these samples differed from 13.82 to 14.57 mm. Although its Cu content was lower than that of other samples, steel D2 exhibited better plasticity and formability, which was attributed to ~/--,c~＇ martensitic phase transformation. EBSD, XRD, and magnetism tests showed that increases in deformation ratio gradually increased the α＇ martensite phase of a sample ,thereby contributing to its strain and inducing the optimal transformation-induced plasticity effect. An Meeo/5o temperature of around 20 ℃, which is close to the deformation temperature,provided the austenite with adequate stability and gradually transformed it into martensite, thereby endowing lean ASS with better formability.

Lap-Shear Performance of Weld-Bonded Mg Alloy and Austenitic Stainless Steel in Three-Sheet Stack-Up

With the growing interest in utilizing Mg and austenitic stainless steel(ASS)in the automotive sector,joining them together in three-sheet configuration is inevitable.However,achieving this task presents considerable challenges due to the large differences in their physical,metallurgical and mechanical properties.To overcome these challenges,the feasibility of using weld-bonding to join Mg alloy/ASS/ASS was investigated.The nugget formation,interface characteristics,microstructure and mechanical properties of the joints were investigated.The results show that the connection between the Mg alloy and upper ASS was achieved through the combined effect of the cured adhesive and weld-brazing in the weld zone.On the other hand,a metallurgical bond was formed at the ASS/ASS interface.The Mg nugget microstructure exhibited fine columar grains composed predominantly of primaryα-Mg grains along with a eutectic mixture ofα-Mg andβ-Mg17Al12.The nugget formed at the ASS/ASS interface consisted largely of columnar grains of austenite,with some equiaxed dendritic grains formed at the centerline of the joint.The weld-bonded joints exhibited an average peak load and energy absorption of about 8.5 kN and 17 J,respectively(the conventional RSW joints failed with minimal or no load application).The failure mode of the joints changed with increasing welding current from interfacial failure via the Mg nugget/upper ASS interface to partial interfacial failure(part of the Mg nugget was pulled out of the Mg sheet).Both failure modes were accompanied by cohesive failure in the adhesive zone.

Bulging Distortion of Austenitic Stainless Steel Sheet on the Partially Penetrated Side of Non-Penetration Lap Laser Welding Joint

Non-penetration laser welding of lap joints in austenitic stainless steel sheets is commonly preferred in fields where the surface quality is of utmost importance.However,the application of non-penetration welded austenitic stainless steel parts is limited owing to the micro bulging distortion that occurs on the back surface of the partial penetration side.In this paper,non-penetration lap laser welding experiments,were conducted on galvanized and SUS304 austenitic stainless steel plates using a fiber laser,to investigate the mechanism of bulging distortion.A comparative experiment of DC01 galvanized steel-Q235 carbon steel lap laser welding was carried out,and the deflection and distortion profile of partially penetrated side of the sheets were measured using a noncontact laser interferometer.In addition,the cold-rolled SUS304 was subjected to heat holding at different temperatures and water quenching after bending to characterize its microstructure under tensile and compressive stress.The results show that,during the heating stage of the thermal cycle of laser lap welding,the partial penetration side of the SUS304 steel sheet generates compressive stress,which extrudes the material in the heat-affected zone to the outside of the back of the SUS304 steel sheet,thereby forming a bulge.The findings of these experiments can be of great value for controlling the distortion of the partial penetrated side of austenitic stainless steel sheet during laser non-penetration lap welding.

Prediction of Hot Deformation Behavior of 7Mo Super Austenitic Stainless Steel Based on Back Propagation Neural Network

The hot compression tests of 7Mo super austenitic stainless(SASS)were conducted to obtain flow curves at the temperature of 1000-1200℃and strain rate of 0.001 s^(-1)to 1 s^(-1).To predict the non-linear hot deformation behaviors of the steel,back propagation-artificial neural network(BP-ANN)with 16×8×8 hidden layer neurons was proposed.The predictability of the ANN model is evaluated according to the distribution of mean absolute error(MAE)and relative error.The relative error of 85%data for the BP-ANN model is among±5%while only 42.5%data predicted by the Arrhenius constitutive equation is in this range.Especially,at high strain rate and low temperature,the MAE of the ANN model is 2.49%,which has decreases for 18.78%,compared with conventional Arrhenius constitutive equation.

Effects of alloying elements Mn,Mo,Ti,Si,P and C on the incubation period of void swelling in austenitic stainless steels

Void swelling,which induces the degradation of the original properties of nuclear materials under high-energy particleirradiation,is an important problem.The incubation period,a transient stage before the steady void growth,determines the duration of service of nuclear materials.Several experimental studies have been performed on void observations by transmission electron microscopy(TEM),which,however,has a resolution limit for the size of defect clusters.Positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy(PALS)enables the detection of small vacancy clusters,single vacancies,dislocations and precipitates.The use of these two methods provides complementary information toward detecting defect information in the incubation period.Here,defect structures during the incubation period in austenitic stainless steels,by means of PALS and TEM are reviewed.The role of alloying elements into determining the period is explained.Furthermore,the existing problems and research directions in this field are presented.

Processing map and dynamic recrystallization behaviours of 316LN-Mn austenitic stainless steel

The hot deformation behaviours of 316LN-Mn austenitic stainless steel were investigated by uniaxial isothermal compression tests at different temperatures and strain rates.The microstructural evolutions were also studied using electron backscatter diffraction.The flow stress decreases with the increasing temperature and decreasing strain rate.A constitutive equation was established to characterize the relationship among the deformation parameters,and the deformation activation energy was calculated to be 497.92 k J/mol.Processing maps were constructed to describe the appropriate processing window,and the optimum processing parameters were determined at a temperature of 1107-1160℃ and a strain rate of 0.005-0.026 s^(-1).Experimental results showed that the main nucleation mechanism is discontinuous dynamic recrystallization(DDRX),followed by continuous dynamic recrystallization(CDRX).In addition,the formation of twin boundaries facilitated the nucleation of dynamic recrystallization.

Research Progress and Development Tendency of Nitrogen-alloyed Austenitic Stainless Steels

Research progress on nitrogen alloyed austenitic stainless steels was expounded through the development of steel grades. In addition, hot topics in the research of nitrogen-alloyed austenitic stainless steels were discussed, in cluding the solubility of nitrogen, brittle ductile transition, and welding. On this basis, it was proposed that the fu- ture development tendency of nitrogen alloyed austenitic stainless steels lied in the three fields of high-performance steels, resource saving steels, and biologically friendly steels. The problems encountered during the research of ni- trogen-alloyed austenitic stainless steels were discussed.

Effect of Free-cutting Additives on Machining Characteristics of Austenitic Stainless Steels

The machinability tests were conducted by using a YD-21 dynamometer on a CA6161A lathe.The experiments were conducted to determine the effect of free-cutting additives on machining characteristics of austenitic stainless steels.The conventional austenitic stainless steel 1Cr18Ni9Ti（steel A） and the free cutting austenitic stainless steel（steel B） were prepared.The results have shown that machinable inclusions were composed of MnS and CuO,and they might be also Ti4C2S2.The presence of Bi in the inclusion was detected by the atom map and electro-probe microanalysis（EPMA）,which might be one of the most important factors to improve the machinability of austenitic stainless steels.The cutting forces for steel B were lower than those of steel A at various cutting speeds;the abrasion depth of the flank of the tool for steel B was less than that of the steel A under the same cutting conditions.The machinability of austenitic stainless steel was visibly improved by adding free-cutting additives,such as S,Cu and Bi.Ultimate tensile,yield strength,and total elongation values of the free cutting austenitic stainless steel were improved due to the addition of these free-cutting additives.

Effect of Cold Rolling on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of AISI 301LN Metastable Austenitic Stainless Steels

The microstructure and mechanical properties evolution of AISI 301LN metastable austenitic stainless steels during cold rolling were investigated. A wide range of cold thickness reduction (10%-80%) was carried out in a four-high rolling mill at ambient temperature. The X-ray and Feritscope MP30 were used to identify the strain-induced α′-martensite phase and its volume fraction, respectively. The microstructure was observed by optical micrograph and the mechanical properties were determined by tensile tests and microhardness. The results show that the strain-induced α′-martensite nucleated at the shear bands intersections and the growth of α′-martensite occurred by the repeated nucleation of new embryos. The volume fraction of strain-induced α′-martensite increased with increasing the cold rolling reduction. In addition, the percentage increased in the tensile strength is the same as that of hardness. The ratio between the average tensile strength and the average microhardness was found to range between 2.82 and 3.17.

Effects of Mo on the Precipitation Behaviors in High-Nitrogen Austenitic Stainless Steels

Precipitation behaviors of Fe-18Cr-18Mn-0.63N and Fe-18Cr-18Mn-2Mo-0.69N high-nitrogen austenitic stainless steels during isothermally aging at 850℃ have been investigated by optical microscopy （OM）, scan- ning electron microscopy （SEM）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM） and X-ray diffraction （XRD）. The experimental results show that precipitation displays a discontinuous cellular way and the precipitates are identified as Cr2N in Fe-18Cr-18Mn-0.63N steel. The addition of Mo makes precipitation occur not only at the grain boundary but also inside the grain and precipitation also displays discontinuous cellular way. The precipitates at the grain boundary and in the cell are both identified as Cr2N phase and X phase and the precipitates inside the grain are identified as X phase in Fe-18Cr-18Mn-2Mo-0.69N steel. The nucleations of X phase and Cr2N phase at the grain boundary are both governed by the diffusion of Cr atoms. The formation and growth of X phase inside the grain are induced by the impoverishment of N atoms with increasing aging time.