Microstructure and toughness of CuNiMo austempered ductile iron

The effect of austempering on the microstructure and toughness of nodular cast iron (designated as CuNiMoSG) alloyed with molybdenum, copper, nickel, and manganese has been studied. Light microscopy (LM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray diffraction technique were performed for microstructural characterization, whereas impact energy test was applied for toughness measurement. Specimens were austenitised at 860 °C, then austempered for various times at 320 and 400 °C, followed by ice-water quenching. Austempering at 320 °C produces a microstructure consisting of a mixture of acicular bainitic ferrite and the stable carbon-enriched austenite. In this microstructure ε-carbides are also identified after austempering up to 5 h. Fracture mode is changed from ductile to brittle with the prolonged time of austempering at 320 °C. The highest impact energy (115 kJ) corresponds not only to ductile fracture, but also to the maximum value of the volume fraction of retained austenite. Only martensitic structure was observed during austempering at 400 °C, inducing brittle fracture and significantly low-impact energy (10–12 kJ).     

A study on microstructure and toughness of copper alloyed and austempered ductile irons

In this study, ductile irons with and without 1 wt% copper alloy were austempered to become austempered ductile irons (ADIs). Microstructure, impact toughness, and fracture toughness were evaluated to determine how both the copper alloying and austempering treatments influenced the toughness properties of ductile irons. The results show that, because copper increases the retained austenite content in ADI, the Cu-alloyed ADI has better impact toughness and fracture toughness (K_IC value) than does the unalloyed one. In particular, the impact toughness and the fracture toughness of ADI could be efficiently improved by treating the Cu-alloyed ductile iron at a higher austempering temperature (360 °C) to obtain more retained austenite in its microstructure.     

The Influence of Austempering Conditions on the Machinability of a Ductile Iron

Austempering conditions such as temperature and time and their influence on austempered ductile iron machinability were analyzed. Austenitization at 910°C for 90 min and austempering into molten salt bath at 300°C, 360°C, and 420°C for 30, 60, and 90 min each were performed. Microstructures were analyzed by optical microscopy and hardness measurements. Samples were further machined in a lathe for machinability tests. The lathe was instrumented considering power and cutting time and machinability evaluation performed referring to cutting force and material removal. Microstructures at 300°C for 30 min showed ausferrite with retained austenite and martensite. Retained austenite decreased and acicular ferrite sheaves appeared at 60-min austempering time. Mixed bainite was also present at 90-min austempering. Ausferrite and retained austenite were observed in all austempering periods at 360°C, whereas at 420°C only bainite and fine pearlite were present. Hardness increased with increasing temperature at 30-min austempering and decreased with increasing time. However, an exception was observed at 420°C. The highest machinability performance was achieved at 360°C at 60-min austempering, and the lowest performance at 420°C at 90-min austempering.     

Microstructure and mechanical properties of austempered AISI 9255 high-silicon steel

The present investigation is focused on evaluating the microstructure and mechanical properties of American Iron and Steel Institute 9255 high-silicon steel austempered at different temperatures and durations. Material characterisation was done using a scanning electron microscope and an X-ray diffractometer. Results show the bainite microstructure over a temperature range of 280–400°C. Bainite structure gains coarseness at higher temperatures at 360 and 400°C. A significant improvement in the tensile properties was observed for all austempered specimens; with a maximum tensile strength of 1852?MPa and elongation up to 35%. An excellent strain hardening response was observed from the samples austempered at temperatures of 360 and 400°C. Tensile properties were found to be superior at 15?min of austempering duration for all austempering temperatures.     

Formation of strain-induced martensite in austempered ductile iron

The present work has been taken up to study the influence of microstructure on the formation of martensite in austempered ductile iron. Ductile iron containing 1.5 wt.% nickel and 0.3 wt.% molybdenum was subjected to two types of austempering treatments. In the first, called as conventional austempering, the samples were austempered for 2 h at 300, 350 or 400 °C. In the second treatment, called as stepped austempering, the samples were initially austempered at 300 °C for 10, 20, 30, 45 or 60 min. These were subsequently austempered for 2 h at 400 °C. Tensile tests revealed considerable variation in the strain-hardening behaviour of the samples with different heat treatments. In the case of samples subjected to conventional austempering, it was found that strain-hardening exponent increased with increasing austempering temperature. In the case of samples subjected to stepped austempering, increased strain hardening was observed in samples subjected to short periods of first step austempering. Study of the microstructures revealed that increased strain hardening was associated with the formation of strain-induced martensite. There was a greater propensity for the formation of strain-induced martensite in the samples containing more of blocky austenite. Retained austenite in the form of fine films between sheaths of ferrite was relatively more stable. Studies revealed that the morphology, size and carbon content of the retained austenite were important parameters controlling their tendency to transform to martensite.     

Metallography of bainitic transformation in austempered ductile iron

Abstract

An unalloyed nodular cast iron has been used to investigate the development of microstructure on heat treating in the bainite temperature region. Specimens were austenitised at 900°C for 1·5 h, then austempered for 1, 2, or 3 h at 250,300, and 350°C, respectively, and examined by light, transmission electron, and scanning electron microscopy. Experimental results indicate a microstructure consisting of a stable, highly enriched, retained austenite with one of two lower bainitic ferrite morphologies. One of these morphologies is carbide free acicular ferrite for specimens austempered at 350°C for 1 h and the other is bainitic ferrite in which carbide is distributed within the ferrite produced by different heat treatment conditions. Austempering at 350°C for 2 h and at 300°C for 1 and 2 h resulted in the formation of transition carbides in bainitic ferrite platelets. The η carbide was formed at 350°C for 2 h by precipitation from a bainitic ferrite supersaturated with carbon. By contrast, ? carbide was associated with austempering at 300°C for 1 and 2 h and precipitates either on the austenite twin/bainitic ferrite boundaries or within the bainitic ferrite. The fracture mode of tensile and impact specimens in the austempered condition was fully ductile compared with as cast specimens, which had mixed fracture characteristics.

MST/1646     

Characterization of transformed and deformed microstructures in transformation induced plasticity steels using electron backscattering diffraction

The microstructure of transformation induced plasticity (TRIP) steels was characterized by means of electron backscattering diffraction (EBSD) technique to identify and quantify their different microstructures such as ferrite, bainite, and retained austenite. Further, the strain distribution in ferrite and retained austenite was analyzed during deformation. The TRIP steels were annealed by austempering for different durations to investigate the effect of the austempering time on the volume fraction change of the microstructural constituents. The quantitative analysis by EBSD coupled with an image contrast analysis revealed that the amount of retained austenite decreased and the amount of bainite increased with increasing austempering time. The mechanical properties of the TRIP steels were also affected by the austempering time. The maximum elongation was obtained in the sample austempered for 5 min, probably because of the good stability of retained austenite. The strain distribution in bcc and fcc phases during tensile deformation was characterized by evaluating the changes in the average local misorientation of the phases.     

贝氏体区等温时间对TRIP钢残奥及力学性能影响

为研究贝氏体区等温时间对热轧TRIP钢残余奥氏体和力学性能的影响,采用金相显微镜、X射线衍射、拉伸实验等方法对3种不同贝氏体区等温时间下制备的热轧TRIP钢进行分析.结果表明:随着贝氏体等温时间的延长,残余奥氏体量减少而残余奥氏体碳含量增加,残余奥氏体晶粒尺寸及残余奥氏体形貌变化不大;热轧TRIP钢的力学性能随着贝氏体...     

Fracture behavior and mechanism in austempered ductile iron

The fracture behavior of copper-alloyed austempered ductile iron (ADI) was studied using metallography and fractography of selected samples. Three different grades of ADI were developed by austenitization at 900 °C for 60 min, followed by austempering for 60 min at either 270, 330, or 380 °C. The variation in austempered microstructure was determined by scanning electron microscopy of metallographically prepared samples, and structural parameters such as volume fraction of austenite, carbon content, and bainitic needle width were determined from the X-ray diffraction of powdered samples. The effect of austempering temperature on these structural parameters and on hardness, 0.2% proof stress, ultimate tensile strength (UTS), percent elongation, and impact strength was also studied. The fracture behavior under tensile and impact loading was determined by examination of the fractured surfaces and transverse cross sections near the fracture surface. The hardness, 0.2% proof stress, and UTS decrease and the impact energy increases as the austempering temperature is increased, and the morphology of the bainitic structure changes from lower to upper.     

Effect of modified austemper on tensile properties of 0·52%C steel

Abstract

The effect of a modified austemper on the tensile properties of 0·52%C steel has been studiedfor the purpose of developing the mechanical properties of upper bainitic steel. The modified austempering treatment involved intercritical annealing at 1018 K in the two phase region offerrite (α) and austenite (γ) followed by austempering at 673 K and subsequent water cooling. The results have been compared with those obtained from conventionally austempered steel, and quenched and tempered steel with a similar ultimate tensile stress. The modified austempered steel consisted of a mixed structure of upper bainite and 10 vol.-% ferrite in which ferrite appeared as layers along the rolling direction. The modified austempering treatment wasfound to significantly increase the product of ultimate tensile stress and total elongation, and also the notch tensile stress at 193 K. Conventional austenitising at 1173 K followed by subcritical annealing at 998 K in the two phase region of ex and y, and then austempering at 673 K and subsequent water cooling produced the same mixed structure of upper bainite and 10 vol.-% ferrite. However, this treatment yielded inferior mechanical properties to those obtained with the modified austempering treatment, independent of the test temperature. The results are described and discussed.

MST/3102     

Effect of austempering treatment on microstructure and mechanical properties of high-Si steel

In the present investigation, the influence of austempering treatment on the microstructure and mechanical properties of silicon alloyed cast steel has been evaluated. The experimental results show that an ausferrite structure consisting of bainitic ferrite and retained austenite can be obtained by austempering the silicon alloyed cast steel at different austempering temperature. TEM observation and X-ray analysis confirmed the presence of retained austenite in the microstructure after austempering at 400 °C. The austempered steel has higher strength and ductility compared to as-cast steel. With increasing austempering temperature, the hardness and strength decreased but the percentage of elongation increased. A good combination of strength and ductility has been obtained at an austempering temperature of 400 °C.     

Influence of Hot Deformation and Subsequent Austempering on the Mechanical Properties of Hot Rolled Multiphase Steel

Influence of hot deformation and subsequent austempering on the mechanical properties of hot rolled multiphase steel was investigated. Thermo-mechanical control processing （TMCP） was conducted by using a laboratory hot rolling mill, where three different kinds of finishing rolling reduction, and austemperings with various isothermal holding duration were applied. The results have shown that a multiphase microstructure consisting of polygonal ferrite, granular bainite and larger amount of stabilized retained austenite can be obtained by controlled rolling processes. Mechanical properties increase with increasing the amount of deformation because of the stabilization of retained austenite. Ultimate tensile strength （σb）, total elongation （σ） and the product of ultimate tensile strength and total elongation （σb-σ） reach the maximum values （791 MPa, 36% and 28476 MPa%, respectively） at optimal processes.     

不同热输入下F460钢焊接粗晶热影响区韧脆转变的内在机理

使用Gleeble 3800热模拟试验机模拟F460钢单道次焊接条件下焊接粗晶热影响区的热循环过程,通过光镜(OM)、扫描电镜(SEM)分析热影响区的显微组织、确定临界事件,通过ABAQUS软件计算临界解理断裂应力σf,进而系统分析不同焊接热输入E下韧脆转变温度变化的内在机理。结果表明:随着E的提高,焊接粗晶热影响区显微组织依次为少量板条马氏体和大量细密的板条贝氏体,板条贝氏体较多的板条/粒状贝氏体,粒状贝氏体较多的板条/粒状贝氏体,粗大的粒状贝氏体。原始奥氏体晶粒、贝氏体团的最大尺寸随着E的提高而变大。在完全解理断裂的冲击断口上,寻找停留在缺口尖端附近的残留裂纹,通过对比残留裂纹长度、原始奥氏体晶粒大小、贝氏体团尺寸,发现不同E下解理断裂的临界事件尺寸都是贝氏体团大小,而临界事件尺寸越小,韧脆转变温度越低。此外,通过有限元模拟缺口尖端的应力分布得到σf,σf越大冲击韧度越好,随着E的提高σf降低,故进一步说明随着E的提高韧脆转变温度Tk上升的内在机理。     

The effect of duplex stainless steel microstructure on its cavitation morphology in seawater

An ultrasonically induced cavitation facility was used to study the effect of a cast duplex stainless steel (DSS) microstructure on its corrosion behavior in seawater. Under cavitation conditions, small cavities initiated in the ferritic matrix and at the ferrite–austenite boundaries. With the progress of cavitation, the attack concentrated in the austenitic phase and then spread to the ferritic phase and was associated with cleavage-like facets, ductile tearing, river patterns and crystallographic steps at later stages. Cross-sections of specimens revealed microcracks initiating from the ferritic matrix at the bottom of cavities. Crack propagation into the matrix was impeded by the austenitic islands.     

High temperature decomposition of austempered microstructures in spheroidal graphite cast iron

Abstract

Spheroidal graphite (SG) cast iron is often plasma nitrided for corrosion resistance, and plasma nitriding has been proposed as a surface engineering treatment to improve wear resistance. However, the microstructure of austempered SG iron comprises constituents that may be unstable at nitriding temperatures. Therefore, the thermal stability of austempered SG cast iron has been studied at high temperature. Differential scanning calorimetry shows that microstructures obtained by austempering at low (300°C) and intermediate (380°C) temperatures, and which contained retained austenite, underwent a large exothermic transition during heating to typical nitriding temperatures. The transition began at approximately 470°C and peaked at 510–520°C, and was due to the decomposition of retained austenite to ferrite and cementite. A microstructure obtained by austempering at a higher temperature (440°C), and which consisted entirely offirst and second stage bainite, was stable up to nitriding temperatures. After tempering for 2 h at 570°C all austempered microstructures consisted offerrite and cementite, but cementite was most finely distributed in the material that had been austempered at 300°C, and coarsest in that austempered at 440°C. It is concluded that if SG cast iron is to be nitrided conventionally at temperatures >500°C, then prior austempering to obtain controlled microstructures is of limited value.

MST/3106     

Geometry,mechanical and ballistic properties of ADI material perforated plates

In this paper, austempered ductile iron has been evaluated as an alternative to steel for perforated plates applied in the ballistic protection of military vehicles. The austempering was performed in lower and higher austempering ranges in order to obtain two types of austempered ductile iron: one with a higher strength, and the other with a higher ductility. Perforated plates having two different thicknesses of 7 and 9 mm were mounted in front of basic armour and 12.7 × 99 mm armour – piercing incendiary ammunition was fired from 100 m. It was shown that the austempered ductile iron material austempered at a lower temperature has superior ballistic resistance, providing a full (five out of five armour – piercing incendiary shots stopped) ballistic resistance if combined with 13 mm basic armour plate. The thicker austempered ductile iron perforated plate provides more significant penetrating core damage, and therefore, lower basic plate damage. On the other hand, the thinner austempered ductile iron material perforated plate can be considered optimal due to its lower weight and higher mass effectiveness. In austempered ductile iron material austempered at a higher temperature, besides a lower hardness, bulk retained low-carbon metastable austenite transforms into martensite through strain induced mechanism, causing a partial brittle fracture.     

等温淬火对奥贝球铁上贝氏体转变动力学的影响

本文研究了等温淬火过程中奥氏体化温度和等温淬火温度对奥贝球铁上贝氏体第一阶段转变速度的影响及其机制；观察与测定了不同等温转变时奥贝球铁的组织与性能。结果表明，升高奥氏体化温度和等温淬火温度，使上贝氏体第一阶段转变速度减慢，在该转变结束时，奥贝球铁组织与性能最稳定。     

X100级管线钢的组织和强韧性

用光学显微镜、扫描电镜、透射电镜和EBSD等方法研究了X100管线钢热连轧钢带的微观组织、析出物、晶粒尺寸等对X100管线钢强韧性的影响。结果表明,通过合理的成分设计和TMCP工艺得到的X100管线钢的平均有效晶粒尺寸约为2.38μm,晶内含有大量位错和亚结构;显微组织由粒状贝氏体、板条贝氏体和M/A岛组成,组织中粒状贝氏体含量较多,板条贝氏体含量较少,M/A岛尺寸较小,弥散分布;细小的第二相能有效钉扎位错的移动,产生沉淀强化效果;实验钢的抗拉强度高于970 MPa,屈服强度高于800 MPa,-40℃以上的Charpy冲击功大于250 J,韧脆转变温度在-40℃与-60℃之间。     

Banded microstructure in a low-alloyed eutectoid steel

The possible influence of banded microstructure on the fracture performance of a high-carbon steel is investigated using electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction techniques. The banded microstructure was found to be alternating layers of bainite and tempered martensite/retained austenite. Transformation of bainite was promoted by a combined effect of segregation of alloying elements, non-uniform thermal gradient across the steel, and the insufficient austenitisation. The transformation of bainite along the prior austenite grain boundaries (PAGBs) introduces a non-uniform strain distribution at bainite/martensite interface and a higher stress concentration, which may eventually lead to the failure of the heavy section in a brittle intergranular manner. Results provide insights to the importance of understanding the bainitic transformation in such eutectoid steel systems.     

Effect of austempering temperature on microstructure of ausferrite in austempered ductile iron

The effect of austempering temperature on the microstructure of ausferrite in austempered ductile iron was investigated. The results show that the grain sizes of retained austenite and acicular bainitic ferrite both become larger with the increase of austempering temperature. As the austempering temperature is 240°C, the crystallographic relationship between ferrite and austenite in ausferrite follows Greninger-Troiano relation. However, Nishiyama–Wassermann relation and Greninger-Troiano relation both appear in ausferrite austempered at 300°C. At this temperature, the point-to-point misorientations of individual ferrite needle austempered at 300°C are less than 1°, being less than those at 240°C. This means the ferrite needles at 300°C contain fewer defects. However, some poles of ferrite needles obviously deviate from their ideal positions, which mainly comes from some ends of ferrite needles.