Texture in deep drawing columbium (Nb)-treated interstitial-free steels

The development of the crystallographic texture in hot-rolled, cold-rolled, and recrystallized Cb-treated interstitial-free steels was investigated using the crystallite orientation distribution analysis as well as X-ray pole figures. The influence of chemical composition of the steel and processing variables on texture and on normal and planar anisotropy of the γ-value of cold-rolled and annealed sheet are discussed and compared with those of aluminum-killed deep drawing steels. While, in terms of ideal orientation components, the re-crystallization texture of aluminum-killed steels can be described as having significant amounts of {lll}〈110〉 and {lll}〈112〉 components, Cb-treated steels show these components and in addition even stronger {554}〈225〉 and {322}〈296〉 components. Distinctions in the hot-rolled texture, the cold-rolled texture, and the recrystallization texture are described. Cb-treated steels have an entirely different planar distribution of γ values or plastic strain ratios compared with aluminum-killed steels. The resulting average γ value, γ_m, is significantly higher for Cb-treated steels and results in superior deep drawing characteristics. A. ELIAS is deceased.