Morphology, size and distribution of MnS inclusions in non-quenched and tempered steel during heat treatment

This article reports the morphology, size, and distribution evolution of MnS inclusions in non-quenched and tempered steel during heat treatment. The variation of single large-sized MnS inclusions at high temperature was observed in situ using a confocal scanning laser microscope （CSLM）. The slender MnS inclusions first changed to pearl-like slrings. These small-sized pearls subsequently coalesced and became closer together as the temperature increased. Large-sized MnS inclusions in non-quenched and tempered steel samples with different thermal histories were investigated with respect to the evolution of their morphology, size, and distribution. After 30 min of ovulation at 1573 K, the percentage of MnS inclusions larger than 3 μm decreased from 50.5% to 3.0%. After a 3 h making period, Ostwald ripening occurred. Most MnS inclusions moved from the grain bounda- ries to the interior. The present study demonstrates that heat treatment is an effective method of changing the morphology, size, and distribution of MnS inclusions, especially large-sized ones.

Heat Treatment and Properties of Nitrogen Alloyed, Martensitic, Corrosion-resistant Steels

This paper gives a short introduction to the typical process route and material properties of these steels in comparison to standard martensitic corrosion-resistant steels. The typical response of these steels to various heat treatment parameters is shown and explained using the three grades M333, N360 and M340 (all made by Bohler Edelstahl GmbH) as examples, and the physical metallurgy of these steels and its consequences for practical heat treatment is explained. The correlation between tempering parameters and their effect on the toughness and corrosion properties is explained in particular detail, showing that these new steels not only offer far better property combinations under the usual heat treatment parameters than standard martensitic corrosion-resistant steels, but that they also open the door to extending heat treatment combinations and properties.

Effects of heat treatment on the microstructures and mechanical properties of a new type of nitrogen-containing die steel

Nitrogen can increase the strength of steels without weakening the toughness and improve the corrosion resistance at the same time. Compared with conventional nitrogen-free die steels, a new type of nitrogen-containing die steel was developed with many superior properties, such as high strength, high hardness, and good toughness. This paper focused on the effects of heat treatment on the microstruc- tures and mechanical properties of the new type of nitrogen-containing die steel, which were investigated by the optimized deformation process and heat treatment. Isothermal spheroidal annealing and high-temperature quenching as well as high-temperature tempering were ap- plied in the experiment by means of an orthogonal method after the steel was multiply forged. The mechanical properties of nitro- gen-containing die steel forgings are better than the standard of NADCA #207-2003.

Evolution of carbides and carbon content in matrix of an ultra-high carbon sintered steel during heat treatment process

DTA, thermal expansion, XRD, and SEM were used to evaluate the effect of quenching temperature on the mechanical properties and microstructure of a novel sintered steel Fe-6Co-1Ni-5Cr-5Mo-1C. Lattice parameters and the mass fraction of carbon dissolved in the matrix of the steel quenched were investigated. It is discovered that the hardness of the steel increases with quenching temperature in the range of 840-900℃ and remains constant in the range of 900 to 1100℃. It decreases rapidly when the temperature is higher than 1100℃. The mass fraction of carbon dissolved in the matrix of the steel quenched at 840℃ is 0.38, but when the quenching temperature is increased to 1150℃, it increases to 0.98. The carbides formed during sintering are still present at grain boundaries and in the matrix of the steel quenched at low quenching temperatures, such as 840℃. When the quenching temperature is increased to 1150℃, most of the carbides at grain boundaries are dissolved with just a small amount of spherical M23C6 existing in the matrix of the quenched steel.

Effect of Heat Treatment on Delayed Fracture Resistance of High Strength Steel 30CrMnSi2NiNb

The steel specimens of nominal composition 0.3C-1.0Cr-1.0Mn-2.0Si-1.0Ni-0.04 Nb were quenched and tempered or isothermally quenched from various temperatures.It is found that the steel quenched and tempered with a tensile strength of 1 500-1 600 MPa has a KISCC（critical stress intensity factor） value below 15.0 MPa · m1/2.The steel isothermally quenched with a tensile strength of 1 350-1 750 MPa has a KISCC value about 20.0 MPa·m1/2.In addition,with increase of isothermal quenching temperature,the tensile strength decreases greatly and KISCC value does not pronouncedly change.The microstructure of isothermally quenched specimens is composed of bainite and retained austenite.The delayed fracture resistance is dependent on the stability of austenite,which is in turn related to the retained austenite volume fraction and carbon content in austenite.

Effect of deep cryogenic treatment on the properties of 80CrMo12 5 tool steel

The effect of deep cryogenic treatment on the mechanical properties of 80CrMo 12 5 tool steel was investigated. Moreover, the effects of stabilization （holding at room temperature for some periods before deep cryogenic treatment） and tempering before deep cryogenic treatment were studied. The results show that deep cryogenic treatment can eliminate the retained austenite, making a better carbide distribu- tion and a higher carbide amount. As a result, a remarkable improvement in wear resistance of cryogenically treated specimens is observed. Moreover, the ultimate tensile strength increases, and the toughness of the sample decreases. It is also found that both stabilization and tem- pering before deep cryogenic treatment decrease the wear resistance, hardness, and carbides homogeneity compared to the deep cryogeni- cally treated samples. It is concluded that deep cryogenic treatment should be performed without any delay on samples after quenching to reach the highest wear resistance and hardness.

Influence of soaking time in deep cryogenic treatment on the microstructure and mechanical properties of low-alloy medium-carbon HY-TUF steel

The influence of soaking time in deep cryogenic treatment on the tensile and impact properties of low-alloy medium-carbon HY-TUF steel was investigated in this study. Microstructural studies based on phase distribution mapping by electron backscatter diffraction show that the deep cryogenic process causes a decrease in the content of retained austenite and an increase in the volume fraction of η-carbide with increasing soaking time up to 48 h. The decrease in the content of retained austenite from ~1.23vol% to 0.48vol% suggests an isothermal martensitic transformation at 77 K. The η-type precipitates formed in deep cryogenic-treated martensite over 48 h have the Hirotsu and Nagakura orientation relation with the martensitic matrix. Furthermore, a high coherency between η-carbide and the martensitic matrix is observed by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The variations in macrohardness, yield strength, ultimate tensile strength, and ductility with soaking time in the deep cryogenic process show a peak/plateau trend.

Inclusion variations and calcium treatment optimization in pipeline steel production

SiCa line and SiCaBaFe alloy were injected into liquid pipeline steel at the end of LF refining as calcium treatment,and samples were taken from the ladles,mould,and slabs.Analysis of Ca content and inclusions shows that Ca content in steel decreases obviously in the following process after calcium treatment;the compositions,morphology,and sizes of inclusions also vary much in the production;primary inclusions in the ladles prior to calcium treatment are mainly Al2O3 inclusions,but they turn to fine irregular CaS-CaO-Al2O3 compound inclusions after the treatment,then become fine globular CaO-Al2O3 inclusions in the mould,and finally change to a few larger irregular CaS-CaO-Al2O3 complex inclusions in the slabs.Thermodynamic study reveals that inclusion variations are related with the preferential reactions among Ca,Al2O3,and S and the precipitation of S in CaO-Al2O3 inclusions with high sulfur capacity.New evaluation standards for calcium treatment in high-grade pipeline steel were put forward according to the inclusion variations and requirements of pipeline steel on inclusion controlling,and the calcium process was studied and optimized.

Deformation Behavior and Formability of Gradient Nano-grained AISI 304 Stainless Steel Processed by Ultrasonic Impact Treatment

The deformation behavior and formability of gradient nano-grained（GNG） AISI 304 stainless steel in uniaxial and biaxial states were investigated by means of tensile test and small punch test（SPT）. The GNG top layer was fabricated on coarse grains（CG） AISI 304 by ultrasonic impact treatment. The results showed that the CG substrate could effectively suppress the strain localization of NC in GNG layer, and an approximate linear relationship existed between the thickness of substrate（h） and uniform true strain before necking（ε_（unif））. Grain growth of NC was observed at the stress state with high Stress triaxiality T, which led to better ductility of GNG/CG 304 in SPT, as well as similar true strain after the onset of necking（ε_（neck）） compared with coarse 304 in tensile test. Ei-values of GNG/CG 304 with different structures were nearly the same at different punch speeds, and good formability of GNG/CG 304 was demonstrated. However, punch speed and microstructure needed to be optimized to avoid much lost of membrane strain region in biaxial stress state.

Electrochemical Corrosion Behavior of the Laser Continuous Heat Treatment Welded Joints of 2205 Duplex Stainless Steel

The electrochemical corrosion behaviors of the welded joints of 2205 duplex stainless steel with the laser continuous heat treatment were investigated. The secondary austenite formation is the outcome of thermodynamic equilibrium breach of the alloy during heat treatment and the result of the continuous heat treatment which has the most important effect on the weld material. The partitioning behaviors of chromium and molybdenum as well as the volume fraction of ferrite and austenite have a remarkable influence on the composition of the individual phase. Mechanical examination of the laser trated weld demonstrates that the tensile strength and yield strength increase with increasing the amount of the secondary austenite. It is shown that the ultimate tensile strength of the 6 kW laser-treated weld is higher about 20 MPa than no heat treatment weld and the ductility can be further improved without compromising strength. The results indicate that the welding alters the corrosion behavior because of different post heat treatment power and the broad active peak is not identified which is attributed to the dissolution of the secondary austenitic in the ferrite phase. It is indicated that pitting resistance equivalent （PRE） values of base metal and 6 kW weld are higher than that of other welds; base metal is 33.7, 6 kW weld 33.3, no treatment 32.4, 4 kW weld 32.8, 8 kW weld 32.5. The extent of corrosion resistance improvement after reheating treatment is mainly caused by the removal of nitrogen from ferritic regions, which occurred as a consequence of secondary austenite growth.

Relief of Residual Stresses in 800 MPa Grade High Strength Steel Weldments by Explosion Treatment and its Effect on Mechanical Properties

The explosion treatment technique has been used in the relief of residual stresses in 800 MPa grade high strength steel manual welded joints. The residual stresses on surface and through thickness of the weldment were measured for both as-welded and explosion-treated sample, the mechanical properties of welded joints under different conditions were also tested. The effect of explosion treatment on the fracture toughness of materials with a residual defect was investigated by crack opening displacement （COD） test. The results show that explosion treatment can reduce not only the surface residual stress but also the residual stress through thickness in the welded joints. The effect of explosion treatment on the mechanical properties and a residual defect in welded joint were inconspicuous.

Dual Phase Heat Treatment of Low-Alloy Steel

Dual phase heat treatment is an economical and effective way for improving the properties of low carbon steels and low-alloy steel materials. In this paper, the microstructures and mechanical properties of 20MnSi steel treated by different dual phase heat treatment have been studied. The results show that dual phase heat treatment with pre-quenching technique and then heating from room temperature to the critical zone can achieve finer and more homogeneous microstructure than that with pre-normalizing technique and then cooling from austenite zone to the critical zone. Among all factors affecting dual phase heat treatment, quenching temperature at the critical zone and tempering temperature play an important part in mechanical properties. Using proper dual phase heat treatment technique with computer optimized parameters, the yield strength, the elongation and impact toughness of 20MnSi can reach 860 MPa, 16% and 207 MPa respectively.

Surface grain refinement mechanism of SMA490BW steel cross joints by ultrasonic impact treatment

Ultrasonic impact treatment (UIT) is a postweld technique for improving the fatigue strength of welded joints. This technique makes use of ultrasonic vibration to impact and plastically deform a weld toe and can achieve surface grain refinement of the weld toe, which is considered as the main reason for the improvement of fatigue strength. In this paper, the microstructure of the surface of a treated weld toe was observed by metallographic microscopy and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The results show that UIT could produce severe plastic deformation on the surface layer of the weld toe and the maximum depth of plastic deformation extended to approximately 260 μm beneath the treated surface. Repeated processing could exacerbate the plastic deformation on the surface layer, resulting in finer grains. We can conclude that the surface grain refinement mechanism of SMA490BW welded joints is related to the high density of dislocation tangles and dislocation walls. © 2017, University of Science and Technology Beijing and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.

Analysis of the formation conditions and characteristics of interphase and random vanadium precipitation in a low-carbon steel during isothermal heat treatment

The characteristics of nanosized precipitates in steels depend on the heat-treatment parameters. The effects of characteristics of vanadium precipitates formed during isothermal heat treatment on the hardness of the ferrite matrix in low-carbon vanadium-alloyed steel were investigated through analysis of transmission electron microscopy images and microhardness measurements. The results show that, during isothermal holding in the temperature range from 675 to 750℃, only interphase precipitation occurs, whereas only random precipitation occurs in the ferrite matrix during holding at 600℃. Furthermore, during isothermal heat treatment between 600 and 675℃, both random and interphase precipitates occurred in the ferrite. Nanoscale vanadium carbides with different atomic ratios of vanadium(V) and carbon(C) were the dominant precipitates in the random and interphase precipitates. The sizes of random precipitation carbides were smaller than those of interphase ones. Also, the sample isothermally heat treated at 650℃ for 900s exhibited a higher hardness with a narrower hardness distribution.

Effects of calcium treatment on non-metallic inclusions and magnetic properties of non-oriented silicon steel sheets

Based on the industrial production of non-oriented silicon steel,calcium treatment by CaSi wire feeding during the RH refining process was studied. The thermodynamics of CaS inclusion formation was analyzed, and the morphology and the size distribution were observed. Furthermore, the change in inclusion characteristics after calcium treatment and the effect of calcium treatment on magnetic properties were discussed. The results show that the formation of MnS and A1N inclusions were restrained, and the aggregating, floating and removing of microinclusions after calcium treatment were effectively promoted. The cleanliness of liquid steel was obviously increased. The main type of inclusions was single phase of CaO, with some complex inclusions composed of CaO, SiO2 and MgO. No CaS inclusion was observed after an appropriate calcium treatment. The size of all inclusions was distributed in the range of 2 - 20 μm, and the number was about 1.8 × 10^5/mm3. In addition, as an increasing amount of calcium was added,the core loss gradually decreased to a stable level, and the magnetic induction decreased quickly after a slow increase. The optimal calcium treatment mode depends on the chemical composition of steel.

Effect of deep cryogenic treatment on the formation of nano-sized carbides and the wear behavior of D2 tool steel

The effect of deep cryogenic treatment on the microstructure, hardness, and wear behavior of D2 tool steel was studied by scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM）, X-ray diffraction （XRD）, hardness test, pin-on-disk wear test, and the reciprocating pin-on-fiat wear test. The results show that deep cryogenic treatment eliminates retained austenite, makes a better carbide distribution, and increases the carbide content. Furthermore, some new nano-sized carbides form during the deep cryogenic treatment, thereby increasing the hardness and improving the wear behavior of the samples.

Influence of post-weld heat treatment on the microstructure and hardness of laser weld seams on hot-rolled TRIP 800 steel

The transformation induced plasticity (TRIP) steels effect occurs because of the martensitic transformation of retained austenite during plastic deformation,and it provides the steel with excellent strength and ductility.While welding remains a vital part of auto body manufacturing,the weldability of TRIP steels is problematic,and this prevents its adoption for many applications in the automotive industry.This present work studies the effects of welding and post-weld heat treatment on the microstructure of TRIP steels.It is found that the microstructures of the fusion zone and the heat affected zone (HAZ) are changed after high-temperature heat treatment.Hardness tests revealed that fusion zone hardness decreased with increasing of temperatures in the post-weld heat treatment on the laser weld seam.The rolling performance of the welding seam and the seam of post-weld heat treatment were also studied.

Production of 48MnV-C non-heat treatment crankshaft steel by means of converter plus continuous casting and hot-rolling process

48MnV-C non-heat treatment crankshaft steel is specially used for making crankshafts of Cummings C engines.It mainly adopts the technology of V—N micro-alloying,at present,it has been successfully used in making crankshaft of heavy duty truck engines.BX STEEL made trial production by means of converter→secondary metallurgy(RH + LF)→rectangular slab caster→hot rolling process,and studied the T[O],T[N],[H]and non-metal inclusion in 48MnV - C steel under continuous casting process condition,the actual grain size and the slab quality.All the chemical compositions and test results met the needs of Cummings Crankshaft Steel Standard.In order to ensure the mechanical properties of the non-heat treatment steel,a certain amount of nitrogen is added to it,also a small amount of sulfur is added to improve the cutting property of the steel.This process route can make full use of the de-hydrogen function of RH,and during RH treatment,rough adjustment of alloy elements may be made while the adjustment of Nitride Manganese nitrogen pick up and adjusting Mn,as well as Ca treatment and S content adjustment may be done during LF treatment so as to ensure the requirement of high nitrogen,low hydrogen,low oxygen content in 48MnV-C steel.Magnetic marks are defects shown in magnetic powder testing after the steel was used to make finished crankshafts.The 48MnV - C non-heat treatment crankshaft steel produced by means of the above-mentioned process route has not only relatively high robust performance which meets the needs of truck crankshaft safety,but also high qualification rate and basically no "magnetic marks" are found after being made into finished crankshafts,which meets the crankshaft standard.Therefore,this steel has been widely used in domestic crankshaft industry.

Influence of Surface Nano-structured Treatment on Pack Boriding of H13 Steel

In order to lower the boriding temperature of hot work steel H13, method of surface mechanical attrition treatment （SMAT）, which can make the grain size of the surface reach nano-scale, was used before pack boriding. The growth of the boride layer was studied in a function of boriding temperature and time. By TEM （transmission electron microscopy）, SEM （scanning electron microscopy）, XRD （x-ray diffraction） and microhardness tests, the grain size, thermal stability of the nano-structured （NS） surface and the thickness,appearance, phases of the surface boride layer were studied. Kinetic of boriding was compared between untreated samples and treated samples. Results showed that after SMAT, the boride layer was thicker and the hardness gradient was smoother. Furthermore, after boriding at a low temperature of 700℃ for 8 h, a boride layer of about 5 μm formed on the NS surface. This layer was toothlike and wedged into the substrate, which made the surface layer combine well with the substrate. The phase of the boride layer was Fe2B. Research on boriding kinetics indicated that the activation energy was decreased for the treated samples.