Unlubricated sliding and rolling/sliding wear behavior of continuously cooled, low/medium carbon bainitic steels

The development of low and medium carbon bainitic steels for railroad track applications is traced through investigations to understand wear behavior. Carbide-free bainite consisting of bainitic ferrite laths, with or without lath boundary retained austenite, has emerged as the best microstructure. Cast and wrought 0.25%C, 1.75%Si, Mo-B steels have exhibited wear resistance comparable with that of Hadfield's austenitic steel under severe rolling/sliding contact.