Microstructure and mechanical properties of austenitic stainless steels after cold rolling

The effect of austenite stability on the evolution of microstructure and mechanical properties of three austenitic stainless steels during cold rolling has been studied. Samples of different grain sizes have been used to characterize the microstructures during deformation. In the case of 304/8% Ni and 304/10% Ni stainless steels, the transformation microstructures consist of mechanical twins: ε-martensite and α′-martensite. No hexagonal close-packed (hcp) ε-martensite was detected in 316 stainless steel. The volume fraction of α′-martensite formed increases with increasing strain in 304 and 316 stainless steels for a given grain size. The amount of α′ phase increases with a decrease in grain size in 304 stainless steel, while the formation of this phase has been found to be grain size insensitive in 316 stainless steel. The strain-hardening behavior exhibited by the three stainless steels used in this study indicates the contribution of both α′-martensite and grain size strengthening in the case of both 304 stainless steels, while only grain size contribution was found in the case of 316 stainless steel.     

Corrosion properties of active screen plasma nitrided 316 austenitic stainless steel

AISI 316 austenitic stainless steel has been plasma nitrided using the active screen plasma nitriding (ASPN) technique. Corrosion properties of the untreated and AS plasma nitrided 316 steel have been evaluated using various techniques, including qualitative evaluation after etching in 50%HCl + 25%HNO₃ + 25%H₂O, weight loss measurement after immersion in 10% HCl, and anodic polarisation tests in 3.5% NaCl solution. The results showed that the untreated 316 stainless steel suffered severe localised pitting and crevice corrosion under the testing conditions. AS plasma nitriding at low temperature (420 °C) produced a single phase nitrided layer of nitrogen expanded austenite (S-phase), which considerably improved the corrosion properties of the 316 austenitic stainless steel. In contrast, AS plasma nitriding at a high temperature (500 °C) resulted in chromium nitride precipitation so that the bulk of the nitrided case had very poor corrosion resistance. However, a thin deposition layer on top of the nitrided case, which seems to be unique to AS plasma nitriding, could have alleviated the corrosion attack of the higher temperature nitrided 316 steel.     

Nitriding of Fe-Cr-Ni films by low energy ion implantation

Nitrogen low energy implantation was carried out simultaneously into thin austenitic stainless steel films, deposited by ion-beam sputtering, and bulk samples with the aim to investigate the influence of the grain size and microstructure on diffusion and phase formation. Nitrogen uptake, diffusion and phase formation were investigated using SIMS, XRD and TEM. The diffusion itself is very similar in bulk material and thin films, indicating that the grain size differing by close to a factor of 1000 is not the dominating factor. In contrast, the transition towards CrN precipitates within a martensitic host was only found for the thin films implanted at 360 °C.     

00Cr22Ni13Mn5Mo2N奥氏体不锈钢的精轧工艺

为了研究00Cr22Ni13Mn5Mo2N奥氏体不锈钢的精轧工艺,使用Gleeble-3800热模拟试验机模拟00Cr22Ni13Mn5Mo2N奥氏体不锈钢在变形温度为800、850、900、950 ℃,变形量为40%、50%、60%,应变速率为50 s^-1条件下的热压缩变形行为,并对其进行1080、1120、1160 ℃的固溶热处理,观察固溶热处理前后的组织形貌。结果表明:在800~950 ℃热压缩温度下,随变形量增大,再结晶越完全,再结晶平均晶粒尺寸越细小;经固溶处理1 h后,静态再结晶就越充分。在40%~60%变形量下,随热压缩温度升高,再结晶越完全,再结晶平均晶粒尺寸越大。热压缩变形试验钢随固溶处理温度升高,再结晶平均晶粒尺寸越大。00Cr22Ni13Mn5Mo2N奥氏体不锈钢的精轧最佳轧制温度为800 ℃,压缩变形量为60%,固溶温度为1080 ℃。     

Comparative corrosion resistance of plasma-based low-energy nitrogen ion implanted austenitic stainless steel

A high nitrogen face-centered-cubic phase (γ_N) was obtained on the nitrided surface of 1Cr18Ni9Ti austenitic stainless steel by plasma-based low-energy nitrogen ion implantation. No pitting corrosion for the γ_N phase was confirmed by electrochemical polarization measurement in 3% NaCl solution. The protective passive film with a duplex character, iron hydroxide/oxides in the outer region and chromium hydroxide/oxides and iron oxides accompanying chromium and iron nitrides in the inner region, was by 2-3 times thicker than that of original stainless steel. The thick iron hydroxide/oxides region formed on the chromium hydroxide/oxides region due to the increase of alkalinity in the solution, leading to barrier against penetration of localized attack of the aggressive ions. The equivalent general corrosion resistance for the γ_N phase was observed in 0.5 mol/l H₂SO₄ solution relative to the original stainless steel. The passive film formed on the γ_N phase in 0.5 mol/l H₂SO₄ solution was similar to that of original stainless steel. The different role of nitrogen was proposed in pitting corrosion resistance and general corrosion resistance of austenitic stainless steel.     

加氢反应器不锈钢堆焊熔合区氢剥离行为的分析

针对309L+347L双层不锈钢带极堆焊工艺,采用高温、高压釜试验方法进行了氢剥离试验研究,试验发现氢剥离裂纹萌生于紧靠熔合区硬化带的纯奥氏体晶界并沿平行于硬化带的奥氏体晶界扩展.结果表明,氢剥离的主要机制是H原子在硬化带与奥氏体不锈钢结合界面高度聚集,造成紧靠硬化带的纯奥氏体晶界脆化,在结合界面高剪应力的作用下,裂纹萌生和扩展.采用较小的焊接热输入,抑制309L堆焊层奥氏体晶粒过分长大并保证铁素体含量;采用合理的焊后热处理,减小硬化带厚度及控制加氢反应器停运的冷却速度是防止氢剥离的有效措施.     

Formation and microstructural characterisation of S-phase layers in Ni-free austenitic stainless steels by low-temperature plasma surface alloying

The feasibility of generating S-phase surface layers in nickel-free austenitic stainless steels by plasma surface alloying with nitrogen (at 430 °C), carbon (at 430 °C and 500 °C) and both carbon and nitrogen (at 430 °C) has been investigated. The structure, microstructure and composition of the plasma-alloyed surfaces were characterised by X-ray Diffraction (XRD), microscopy, Glow Discharge Optical Emission Spectroscopy (GDOES) and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). The experimental results have demonstrated for the first time that the S-phase can be produced in the surface of nickel-free austenitic stainless steel by low-temperature plasma surface alloying. TEM analysis has revealed that when alloyed with carbon no precipitates can be found within the carbon-rich S-phase layer; however, when alloyed with nitrogen or both carbon and nitrogen some nitride precipitates (Mn₃N₂ and Cr₂N) were found within the nitrogen-rich S-phase layer. Based on experimental results, the response of Ni-free austenitic stainless steel to plasma surface alloying has been compared to the Ni-containing counterpart, and the role of nickel in the formation of S-phase in austenitic stainless steels has been discussed.     

TP321奥氏体不锈钢无缝钢管垂直挤压工艺研究

利用热模拟试验机GLEEBLE3500对TP321奥氏体不锈钢进行了等温恒应变压缩试验,分析了变形程度、挤压温度对实际晶粒度的影响。在试生产中验证确定了合理的工艺参数,为TP321奥氏体不锈钢无缝钢管垂直挤压工艺的制定提供了技术依据和支持。     

Influence of Heat Treatment on Cr18Mn18 High Nitrogen Steel Precipitating Behavior and Microstructure

The grain size and precipitate amount which are affected by heat treatment have significant impact on the properties of high nitrogen austenitic stainless steel. In this study, Cr18Mn18 high nitrogen steel sheet is employed to investigate the effects of precipitate on austenitic grain size. It can be seen that the lamella precipitates which are rich in nitrogen and chromium nucleate in the austenite grain boundary and grow inward into grain when aged at 800 ℃ through electron probe micro-analyzer. The transmission electron microscopy results demonstrate that the precipitate is Cr2N and its morphology are detected as ellipsoid-like with major axis of 100-300 nm and minor axis of 50-100 nm roughly. The experiment show that coarsen of the austenite grain is quite critical at 1000-1100 ℃. However, the samples which pre-precipitated at 800 ℃ for 240 min to obtain the most nitride precipitate exhibits much smaller grain size than the as-rolled samples after solid solution treated at 1000, 1050 and 1100 ℃ for 240 min. The results show that the nitride precipitates in the grain boundary can effectively pin the austenite grain boundary and inhibit the grain growth.     

Grain boundary structure and intergranular stress corrosion crack initiation in high temperature water of a thermally sensitised austenitic stainless steel,observed in situ

The development of an intergranular stress corrosion crack initiation site in thermally sensitised type 304 austenitic stainless steel has been observed in situ in high temperature oxygenated water using digital image correlation of time-resolved optical observations. The grain boundary normal stresses were calculated using the Schmid-Modified Grain Boundary Stress (SMGBS) model of Was et al., applying three-dimensional data for the grain boundary planes and grain orientations. The initiation site coincided with the most highly stressed sensitised boundary, demonstrating the importance of the combined contributions to crack initiation of grain boundary structure and plastic strain incompatibility.     

超细晶奥氏体不锈钢的研究状况及问题

详细介绍了超细晶奥氏体不锈钢技术,综述了奥氏体不锈钢力学性能、晶间腐蚀性能、应力腐蚀性能、点蚀和缝隙腐蚀性能与晶粒尺寸之间的关系,指出了超细晶奥氏体不锈钢研究存在的问题.     

节镍型高氮奥氏体不锈钢固溶处理加热过程中的组织演变

对节镍型高氮奥氏体不锈钢进行固溶处理,通过控制加热温度和保温时间,研究高氮奥氏体不锈钢组织的变化规律。结果表明,800℃保温1 h后微观组织中出现混晶,在变形组织的晶界处产生细小的动态再结晶晶粒。在900～1050℃,随温度的升高,再结晶晶粒数量增多,尺寸增大。保温时间的增长会导致晶粒逐渐长大。在1200℃保温,晶粒尺寸从保温0. 5 h时的70μm增长到保温1 h时的117μm,此时晶粒最为均匀。平均晶粒尺寸随时间的变化呈抛物线增长,符合Beck方程:D=105.1t^0.45。并根据试验得到试验钢的最佳热处理方式为1050～1200℃保温1 h。      

Stainless steel patterning by combination of micro-patterning and driven strain produced by plasma assisted nitriding

Plasma-assisted nitriding treatments on austenitic stainless steel at low temperature produce the so called “expanded austenite”. The expansion of the nitrided layer that occurs from the initial surface of the substrate in a direction perpendicular to the surface is used here as a mean to produce patterned surfaces by selective nitrogen diffusion through masks. Using grids, a network of well defined square dots can be obtained. In this communication, the results of nitriding treatments on austenitic stainless steel substrates previously covered by a patterned silicon oxide layer are presented. The interactions mechanisms at the interface between fixed silicon oxide mask with several different shapes (circular and square dots) and the expanded austenite are also described. The role of nitrogen diffusion, consistent with the experimental conditions and the mask characteristics, is shown to be very important. Depending on the size of the dots, it leads to a simple uniform mask deformation or to a significant mask deformation with strong distortions at the edges. This phenomenon is noted as a toroidal-shell shape distortion. Optical cross-section seems to prove that it is only the result of the vertical force due to the austenite expansion induced by nitrogen diffusion just under the mask edges.     

Evaluation of Microstructure and Mechanical Properties in Dissimilar Austenitic/Super Duplex Stainless Steel Joint

To study the effect of chemical composition on microstructural features and mechanical properties of dissimilar joints between super duplex and austenitic stainless steels, welding was attempted by gas tungsten arc welding process with a super duplex (ER2594) and an austenitic (ER309LMo) stainless steel filler metal. While the austenitic weld metal had vermicular delta ferrite within austenitic matrix, super duplex stainless steel was mainly comprised of allotriomorphic grain boundary and Widmanstätten side plate austenite morphologies in the ferrite matrix. Also the heat-affected zone of austenitic base metal comprised of large austenite grains with little amounts of ferrite, whereas a coarse-grained ferritic region was observed in the heat-affected zone of super duplex base metal. Although both welded joints showed acceptable mechanical properties, the hardness and impact strength of the weld metal produced using super duplex filler metal were found to be better than that obtained by austenitic filler metal.     

奥氏体不锈钢-铜钎料钎焊界面反应行为分析

针对电弧钎焊奥氏体不锈钢时,易产生裂纹的问题,采用316LN不锈钢母材和多种铜基钎料,研究了电弧钎焊、炉中钎焊和真空钎焊316LN不锈钢和铜基钎料时的界面反应行为.结果表明,电弧钎焊条件下钎料对母材的润湿性随着电流的加大而提高,钎料沿母材晶界的扩散不明显,在电流较高时母材局部熔化,且易形成沿晶界裂纹.炉中钎焊过程中钎料沿母材晶界扩散明显,但不易形成裂纹;真空钎焊过程中钎料沿母材晶界扩散显著,形成较厚的界面层,但无裂纹出现.较大的焊接热应力以及钎料沿母材晶界扩散造成的晶界弱化是形成界面裂纹的必要条件.     

Influence of processing conditions on structural characteristics of hybrid plasma surface alloyed austenitic stainless steel

A hybrid plasma surface alloying process has recently been developed for austenitic stainless steels to improve their surface hardness, wear resistance and corrosion resistance. The process is carried out in nitrogen and methane gas mixtures at temperatures below 450°C and facilitates the simultaneous incorporation of nitrogen and carbon into the surfaces of austenitic stainless steels, forming a dual layer structure with an extremely hard nitrogen-enriched layer on top of a hard carbon-enriched layer. The present paper discusses the influence of three most important processing parameters, i.e., gas composition, temperature and time, on the structural characteristics of the alloyed zones produced on AISI 321 stainless steel, in terms of layer morphology, growth kinetics and chromium compound precipitation. It was found that the development of the alloyed layers is diffusion-controlled, and under proper processing conditions, a precipitation-free dual-layer structure can be produced, with nitrogen and carbon dissolved in the relevant layer forming N-expanded austenite and C-expanded austenite respectively. Based on the experimental results, a threshold temperature-time curve has been established for the investigated austenitic stainless steel.     

High corrosion resistance of austenitic stainless steel alloyed with nitrogen in an acid solution

Passivity of austenitic stainless steel containing nitrogen (ASS N25) was investigated in comparison with AISI 316L in deareated acid solution, pH 0.4. A peculiar nature of the passivation peak in a potentiodynamic curve and the kinetic parameters of formation and growth of the oxide film have been discussed. The electronic-semiconducting properties of the passive films have been correlated with their corrosion resistance. Alloying austenitic stainless steel with nitrogen increases its microstructure homogeneity and decreases the concentration of charge carriers, which beneficially affects the protecting and electronic properties of the passive oxide film.     

Effects of deformation-induced martensite and grain size on ductile-to-brittle transition behavior of austenitic 18Cr-10Mn-N stainless steels

Effects of deformation-induced martensite and grain size on ductile-to-brittle transition behavior of austenitic 18Cr-10Mn-(0.3∼0.6)N stainless steels with different alloying elements were investigated by means of Charpy impact tests and microstructural analyses. The steels all exhibited ductile-to-brittle transition behavior due to unusual brittle fracture at low temperatures despite having a face-centered cubic structure. The ductileto-brittle transition temperature (DBTT) obtained from Chapry impact tests did not coincide with that predicted by an empirical equation depending on N content in austenitic Cr-Mn-N stainless steels. Furthermore, a decrease of grain size was not effective in terms of lowering DBTT. Electron back-scattered diffraction and transmission electron microscopy analyses of the cross-sectional area of the fracture surface showed that some austenites with lower stability could be transformed to α’-martensite by localized plastic deformation near the fracture surface. Based on these results, it was suggested that when austenitic 18Cr-10Mn-N stainless steels have limited Ni, Mo, and N content, the deterioration of austenite stability promotes the formation of deformation-induced martensite and thus increases DBTT by substantially decreasing low-temperature toughness.     

Plasma nitriding of AISI 304 austenitic stainless steel with pre-shot peening

AISI 304 austenitic stainless steel was plasma nitrided at the temperature ranging from 410 to 520 °C with pre-shot peening. The structural phases, micro-hardness and electrochemical behavior of the nitrided layer were investigated by optical microscopy, X-ray diffraction, micro-hardness testing and anodic polarization testing. The effects of shot peening on the nitride formation, nitride layer growth and corrosion properties were discussed. The results showed that shot peening enhanced the nitrogen diffusion rate and led to a twice thicker nitrided layer than the un-shot peening samples under the same plasma nitriding conditions (410 °C, 4 h). The nitrided layer was composed of single nitrogen expanded austenite (S-phase) when nitriding below 480 °C, which had combined improvement in hardness and corrosion resistance.