Effect of Ni content on the weldability of middle-chromium hyperpure ferritic stainless steels 00Cr21Ti

Excellent weldability substantially contributes to the intrinsic quality of steels,while appropriate chemical composition plays a primary role in the essential weldability of steels.The poor weldability of ferritic stainless steels could be improved through modification with minor alloy elements while minimally increasing the cost.Therefore,studying the effect of minor alloy elements on the weldability of steels is of considerable importance.In this study,several steels of middle-chromium hyperpure ferritic stainless 00Cr21Ti with different Ni content(0.3%,0.5%,0.8%,and 1.0%)were developed,and their weldabilities of butt joint samples welded using the metal inert gas welding process,including the influence of welded joints on the microstructure,tensile performance,corrosion resistance,and fatigue property,were investigated.Results show that the steels with w(Ni)≥0.8%exhibit excellent mechanical properties compared with those with low-Ni content steels,further,their impact toughness at normal atmospheric temperature meets the industrial application standard and the fatigue property is similar to that of 304 austenitic stainless steel.Moreover,results show that the corrosion resistance of all the samples is almost at the same level.The results acquired in this study are supposed to be useful for the optimization of the chemical composition of stainless steels aiming to improve weldability.

Application and failure evaluation of ferritic stainless steels for automotive exhaust systems

In recent years, with attention paid to global environmental problems, there have been requirements for continuous improvement of automobile fuel economy and exhaust gas purification rate. The properties of the ferritic stainless steels （FSS） used to make automobile parts have been improved. This paper introduces the construction of automotive exhaust systems and describes their main failure behaviors and corrosion evaluation procedures.

Ultra-Pure Ferritic Stainless Steels-Grade,Refining Operation,and Application

The grades of ultra-pure ferritic stainless steels, especially the grades used in automobile exhaust system, were reviewed. The dependence of properties on alloying elements, the refining facilities, and the mechanism of the reactions in steel melts were described in detail. Vacuum, strong stirring, and powder injection proved to be effective technologies in the melting of ultra-pure ferritic stainless steels. The application of the ferritic grades was also briefly introduced.

Development of heat-resistant ferritic stainless steels for exhaust lines at Nisshin Steel

Exhaust emission regulations of the automotive are enforced in each country to prevent air pollution and global warming,and the restriction standard tends to become severer.Various techniques such as the combustion improvement of gasoline,upgrades of the catalyst,and the thermal capacity decreases in the exhaust lines are adopted to suit the regulations,and these lead to an increase of the maximum temperature of the exhaust gas. Recently,ferritic stainless steels are mainly used to parts of exhaust lines,as their thermal expansion coefficient is small,and the cyclic oxidation resistance and the thermal fatigue property are better than austenitic stainless steels. This paper presents newly developed heat-resistant stainless steels from Nisshin Steel for exhaust lines usage,and describes the currents of the steel development that could be envisaged in the future.With regard to improving the high-temperature strength of ferritic stainless steels,the addition of Nb,Mo and Cu is effective in solution hardening and precipitation hardening at 700℃,while the addition of Nb,Mo and W is effective in mainly solution hardening at 900℃.The addition of Cr,Si and Mn suppress the breakaway oxidation in air at 950℃up to 200 h of ferritic stainless steels containing 14%Cr.Especially,the addition of 0.8%or higher Mn would effectively improve the adherence of oxide scale.It is confirmed that ferritic stainless steels,NSSHR-1(14Cr-lMn-0.9Si-Nb) and NSSHR-2(10Cr-0.9Si-Nb-Ti ),is having a superior heat resistance,formability and cost performance compared to conventional Type441 and Type439 respectively.

Key role of niobium stabilization in ultra-pure ferritic stainless steels for construction and home-appliance applications

The beneficial effects of niobium addition on properties such as high-temperature strength, toughness, and formability of ferritic stainless steels have been addressed. Based on the Thermo-Calc analysis, precipitation of niobium carbonitride and solubility of niobium have been predicted and characterized via scanning electron microscope （SEM） and transmission electron microscope （TEM） observations. It is shown that addition of niobium has a beneficial effect on improving the high-temperature strength, toughness, formability, and corrosion resistance of ferritic stainless steel. Soluted niobium is very effective in improving the high-temperature strength, which is beneficial to reducing the sticking propensity during hot rolling. Although niobium increases the recrystallization temperature, niobium-added ferritic stainless steels show a high mean r value, or a high plastic strain ratio, as long as the annealing temperature is high enough. Furthermore, because niobium helps to inhibit the formation of chromium carbides, ferritic stainless steel can keep an effective chromium content in the matrix, leading to improved corrosion resistance. Applications of these ferritic stainless steels for construction and home appliances have also been presented.

Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Nb- and Nb+ Ti-Stabilised 18Cr-2Mo Ferritic Stainless Steels

To explore the optimum use of stabilised elements and study the influences of stabilisation in 18 Cr-2 Mo grades,the Nb and Nb+Ti microalloying investigation focused on the relationships of the microstructure and mechanical properties of the microalloyed 18 Cr-2 Mo ferritic stainless steel thick plates.Thermo-Calc calculation was performed to predict the equilibrium phase diagrams.Afterwards,the microstructure,i.e.grain size and precipitation,of as-annealed specimens was analysed by means of optical microscopy,scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy,X-ray diffraction and energydispersive spectroscopy.Also,electron backscatter diffraction mapping was constructed to characterise grain boundary.The mechanical properties,including tensile strength and impact toughness,were tested to correlate with the microstructure.The results show that the grain sizes of Nb-stabilised steel are comparatively smaller,which is related to the fine precipitation at the grain boundaries and beneficial to the impact toughness.The increase in its strength is not apparent due to the inhomogeneous grain sizes.The grain boundary characters are similar,which is not the main factor related to their mechanical properties.When Ti is added,TiN forms above the liquidus,and large TiN particles evidently impair impact toughness.

Effects of Microalloying and Heat-Treatment Temperature on the Toughness of 26Cr–3.5Mo Super Ferritic Stainless Steels

The effects of Ni content and heat-treatment process on the toughness of a super ferritic stainless steel with 26 wt% Cr and 3.5 wt% Mo were investigated. It was found that with the increase of Ni content, the Charpy impact toughness improved remarkably, and transformed from cleavage brittle fracture to the most ductile fracture. There were no obvious differences between the high- and low-Ni contents on the microstructure and mechanical properties since the addition of Ni did not influence crystal structure, phase composition, and precipitation of ultra pure ferritic stainless steels. Meanwhile, the heat-treatment process was a key point to maintain a high level of toughness by optimizing structure and removing detrimental precipitation, i.e., chi phase.

Inclusions and solidification structures of high pure ferritic stainless steels dual stabilized by niobium and titanium

As the raw materials in the post process of rolling and heat treatment, ingots have great effects on the properties of the final products. Inclusions and solidification structures are the most important aspects of the quality of ingots. Niobium and titanium are usually used to react with carbon and nitrogen to improve the properties of ferritic stainless steels. In this research, combined with thermodynamic calculation, effects of niobium and titanium on the inclusions and solidification structures in three kinds of high pure ferritic stainless steels with different titanium additions were investigated by optical microscope（OM）, scanning electron microscope（SEM）, transmission electron microscope（TEM）, and energy disperse spectrometer（EDS）. Results show that Al2O3 and a few（Nb,Ti）N particles form when titanium addition is 0.01 %.Furthermore, inclusions are mainly Ti N and Al2O3–Ti Ox–Ti N duplex inclusions when titanium addition is more than0.10 %. Those two types of inclusions are in well distribution, and can afford nuclei to the solidification process.Therefore, the ratio of equiaxed zone increases with the increase of titanium addition. The ratio increases from42.1 % to 64.0 % with the titanium addition increasing from 0.01 % to 0.10 %, and it increases to 85.7 % when the titanium addition reaches 0.34 %.

Inclusions for Ultra-pure Ferritic Stainless Steels Containing 21% Chromium

As stabilizing elements added into ultra-pure ferritic stainless steels, niobium and titanium react with car- bon and nitrogen to form carbonitrides and have great effects on the ratio of equiaxed zone and the grain size of solidi- fication structure of ingots, which remarkably affect the quality of cold-rolled sheets. Combined with thermodynamic calculation, style and precipitation progress of inclusions in ultra-pure ferritic stainless steels were investigated by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersive spectros- copy. The results indicate that the inclusions are mainly Ti-Al-N- O system inclusions in ultra-pure ferritic stainless steels. Al2Oa starts to precipitate firstly and then TiOx and TiN precipitates sequently. The inclusions are mainly single TiN particles and complex inclusions with Al2O3-Ti2O3 as cores and covered with TiN under the condition of 0.31% titanium addition and mainly Al2O3 under the condition of 0.01% titanium addition. A few （Nb,Ti）N parti- cles precipitate because of no enough titanium to react with nitrogen when titanium addition is 0.01 %. In addition, fine Nb（C, N） particles with size of less than 500 nm precipitate at relatively low temperature.

Effect of Grain Size on the Precipitation Behaviour in Super-Ferritic Stainless Steels During a Long-Term Ageing

A 27.6Cr-3.6Mo-2Ni alloy was solution treated and then aged for a long time to study the effect of grain size on precipitation behaviour by using X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. The experimental results demonstrated that the average grain size increased from 46.3 ± 6.2 to 101.8 ± 13.5 μm and the grain boundary length per unit area decreased from 3.3 × 10^(4) to 1.7 × 10^(4) m/m^(2) with an increasing annealing temperature from 1100 to 1200 ℃. After ageing at 800 ℃, the σ-phase,χ-phase and Laves phase were observed. As the ageing time increased, the σ-phase notably increased, while the χ-phase and Laves phase gradually decreased before finally vanishing after ageing for 400 h. The σ-phase precipitation kinetics curves consisted of two parts, and the grain size had a significant effect on the first stage of the precipitation curves due to the abundance of nucleation sites in the specimens with finer grains. The Laves phase was transformed from Nb(C,N) particles by Nb diffusion. As the ageing time increased, the ferrite phase decreased due to the transformation of the ferrite phase to the σ-phase, and then C was expelled into the untransformed ferrite grains. Moreover, new Nb(C,N) particles were formed by Nb diffusion from the Laves phase, resulting in the absence of the Laves phase.

An overview on the novel heat-resistant ferritic stainless steels

Heat-resistant ferritic stainless steels are widely used in many high-temperature applications such as power plants,automotive exhaust manifolds and solid oxide fuel cell interconnects due to their low price,low coefficient of thermal expansion,high thermal conductivity,high thermal fatigue resistance,high creep performance and excellent corrosion resistance.High-temperature strength,formability,high-temperature oxidation resistance and creep performance are the main evaluation criteria for the application.With the development of relevant industries,higher requirements are proposed for the performance of ferritic stainless steels.Therefore,the development of a new generation of heat-resistant ferritic stainless steel has received extensive attention.In this presentation,we summarized the research progress of heat-resistant ferritic stainless steels including high-temperature strength,formability,high-temperature oxidation resistance and creep performance.Meanwhile,some suggestions are given for alloy composition design and microstructure optimization.The future research direction of heat-resistant ferritic stainless steels also prospected.

Influence of the finish rolling temperatures on the microstructure and texture evolution in the ferritic stainless steels

The influence of the finish rolling temperature on the microstructure and texture evolution of Nb and B micro-alloyed ultra purified Cr17 ferritic stainless steels was investigated. The hot rolled bands were produced by conventional rolling process and the finish rolling at relatively low temperatures or ＂warm rolling＂. The microstructure was observed by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy, and X-ray diffraction was used to characterize the texture evolution processes. The results showed that as compared to conventional hot rolling process, the warm rolling has led to the refined and homogeneous microstructure and uniform recrystallization texture along γ-fiber in final sheets, indicating that the finish rolling at relatively low temperatures can be the effective way to improve significantly the formability of final sheets.

Evolution of Through-Thickness Texture in Ultra Purified 17%Cr Ferritic Stainless Steels

Texture inhomogeneity usually takes place in ferritic stainless steels due to the lack of phase transformation and recrystallization during hot strip rolling,which can deteriorate the formability of final sheets.In order to work out the way of weakening texture inhomogeneity,conventional hot rolling and warm rolling processes have been carried out with an ultra purified ferritic stainless steel.The results showed that the evolution of through-thickness texture is closely dependent on rolling process,especially for the texture in the center layer.For both conventional and warm rolling processes,shear texture components were formed in the surface layers after hot rolling and annealing;sharp α-fiber and weakγ-fiber with the major component at{111}〈110〉 were developed in both cold rolled sheet surfaces,leading to the formation of inhomogeneousγ-fiber dominated by{111}〈112〉after recrystallization annealing.In the center layer of conventional rolled and annealed bands,strongα-fiber and weakγ-fiber textures were formed;the cold rolled textures were comprised of sharpα-fiber and weakγ-fiber with the major component at{111}〈110〉,and inhomogeneousγ-fiber dominated by{111}〈112〉 was formed after recrystallization annealing.By contrast,in the centre layer of warm rolled bands,the texture was comprised of weakα-fiber and sharpγ-fiber,andγ-fiber became the only component after annealing.The cold rolled texture displayed a sharpγ-fiber with the major component at{111}〈112〉and the intensity ofγ-fiber close to that ofα-fiber,resulting in the formation of a nearly homogeneousγ-fiber recrystallization texture in the center layer of the final sheet.

Characteristics of SEN clogging and adhesive behavior of oxide inclusion during continuous casting of Ti-stabilized ultra-pure ferritic stainless steels

Submerged entry nozzle(SEN)clogging during continuous casting of Ti-stabilized ultra-pure ferritic stainless(Ti-UPFS)steels was systematically investigated via cross-sectional analysis and acid dissolution treatment.The SEN deposit profile was characterized as occurring in three major layers:(1)an eroded refractory layer;(2)an initial adhesive layer comprised an Al_(2)O_(3)-ZrO_(2) composite sub-layer and a dense Al_(2)O_(3)-based deposit sub-layer;and(3)a porous multiphase deposit layer mainly consisting of MgO·Al_(2)O_(3),CaO-Al_(2)O_(3),and CaO-TiOx.The MgO·Al_(2)O_(3)-rich inclusions did not adhere directly to the eroded refractory but were entrapped during the deposit growth.Results of inclusion characterization in the tundish revealed that the MgO·Al2O3-rich particles present in the tundish served as the primary source of clogging deposits.Furthermore,a novel cavity-induced adhesion model by circular approximation was established to explain the effects of complex inclusion characteristics and refractory material type on adhesion force.A high number of small MgO·Al_(2)O_(3) inclusions were expected to accelerate the buildup of clogging deposits.Improving the modification of MgO·Al_(2)O_(3)-rich inclusions in the size range of 2-4μm by Ca treatment was crucial to minimizing the risk of SEN clogging during the continuous casting of Ti-UPFS steels.

In-situ three-dimensional visualization of dynamic tension deformation in ferrite stainless steels

An improved three-dimensional （3-D） experimental visualization methodology is presented tor evaluating the fracture mechanisms of ferritic stainless steels by in-situ tensile testing with an environmental scanning electron microscope （ESEM）. The samples were machined with a radial notched shape and a sloped surface. Both planar surface deformation and sloping surface deformation-induced microvoids were observed during dynamic tension experiments, where a greater amount of information could be obtained from the sloping surface. The results showed that microvoids formed at the grain boundaries of highly elongated large grains. The microvoids nucleated in the severely deformed regions grew nearly parallel to the tensile axis, predominantly along the grain boundaries. The microvoids nucleated at the interface of particles and the matrix did not propagate due to the high plasticity of the matrix. The large microvoids propagated and showed a zigzag shape along the grain boundaries,seemingly a consequence of the fracture of the slip bands caused by dislocation pile-ups. The final failure took place due to the reduction of the load-beating area.

Effect of welding parameters on the heat-affected zone of AISI409 ferritic stainless steel

One of the main problems during the welding of ferritic stainless steels is severe grain growth within the heat-affected zone （HAZ） In the present study, the microstmctural characteristics of tungsten inert gas （TIG） welded AISI409 ferritic stainless steel were investigated by electron backscattered diffraction （EBSD）, and the effects of welding parameters on the grain size, local misorientation, and low-angle grain boundaries were studied. A 3-D finite element model （FEM） was developed to predict the effects of welding parameters on the holding time of the HAZ above the critical temperature of grain growth. It is found that the base metal is not fully recrystallized. During the welding, complete recrystallization is followed by severe grain growth. A decrease in the number of low-angle grain boundaries is observed within the HAZ. FEM results show that the final state of residual sWains is caused by competition between welding plastic strains and their release by recrystallization. Still, the decisive factor for grain growth is heat input.

Effect of tin addition on the microstructure and properties of ferritic stainless steel

This article reports the effects of Sn on the inclusions as well as the mechanical properties and hot workability of ferritic stainless steel. Precipitation phases and inclusions in Sn-bearing ferritic stainless steel were observed, and the relationship between the workability and the microstructure of the steel was established. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopic analysis of the steel reveals that an almost pure Sn phase forms and MnS-Sn compound inclusions appear in the steel with a higher Sn content. Little Sn segregation was observed in grain boundaries and in the areas around sulfide inclusions;however, the presence of Sn does not adversely affect the workability of the steel con-taining 0.4wt%Sn. When the Sn content is 0.1wt%-0.4wt%, Sn improves the tensile strength and the plastic strain ratio and also improves the plasticity with increasing temperature. A mechanism of improving the workability of ferritic stainless steel induced by Sn addition was discussed：the presence of Sn lowers the defect concentration in the ultra-pure ferritic lattice and the good distribution of tin in the lattice overcomes the problem of hot brittleness that occurs in low-carbon steel as a result of Sn segregation.

Corrosion behavior of ferritic stainless steel with 15wt% chromium for the automobile exhaust system

The effect of chloride ion concentration, pH value, and grain size on the pitting corrosion resistance of a new ferritic stainless steel with 15wt% Cr was investigated using the anodic polarization method. The semiconducting properties of passive films with different chloride ion concentrations were performed using capacitance measurement and Mott-Schottky analysis methods. The aging precipitation and intergranular corrosion behavior were evaluated at 400- 900℃. It is found that the pitting potential decreases when the grain size increases. With the increase in chloride ion concentration, the doping density and the flat-bland potential increase but the thickness of the space charge layer decreases. The pitting corrosion resistance increases rapidly with the decrease in pH value. Precipitants is identified as Nb（C,N） and NbC, rather than Cr-carbide. The intergranular corrosion is attributed to the synergistic effects of Nb（C,N） and NbC precipitates and Cr segregation adjacent to the precipitates.

Interfacial Microstructure of Diffusion Bonded Inconel 738 and Ferritic Stainless Steel Couple

In this study, Inconel 738 alloy was diffusion bonded to a ferritic stainless steel. The effect of bonding temperature on the microstructural development across the joint region was investigated. Following the diffusion bonding, conventional characterization techniques such as scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, energy dispersive X-ray （EDX） and microhardness were used to examine the interracial microstructure. It was seen that bonding temperature was effective on the diffusion of Ni from Inconel 738 to ferritic stainless steel that affected the microstructure of the interface. Austenite phase was formed at the interface as a result of Ni diffusion from the Inconel 738 to the interface.

Tensile and Impact Properties of Shielded Metal Arc Welded AISI 409M Ferritic Stainless Steel Joints

The present study is concerned with the effect of filler metals such as austenitic stainless steel, ferritic stainless steel and duplex stainless steel on tensile and impact properties of the ferritic stainless steel conforming to AISI 409M grade. Rolled plates of 4 mm thickness were used as the base material for preparing single pass butt welded joints. Tensile and impact properties, microhardness, microstructure and fracture surface morphology of the joints fabricated by austenitic stainless steel, ferritic stainless steel and duplex stainless steel filler metals were evaluated and the results were reported. From this investigation, it is found that the joints fabricated by duplex stainless steel filler metal showed higher tensile strength and hardness compared to the joints fabricated by austenitic and ferritic stainless steel filler metals. Joints fabricated by austenitic stainless steel filler metal exhibited higher ductility and impact toughness compared with the joints fabricated by ferritic stainless steel and duplex stainless steel filler metals.