Low Temperature Austenite Decomposition in Carbon Steels

Martensitic steels have become very important engineering materials in modern society. Crucial parts of everyday products are made of martensitic steels, from surgical needles and razor blades to car components and large-scale excavators. Martensite, which results from a rapid diffusionless phase transformation, has a complex nature that is challenging to characterize and to classify. Moreover the possibilities for modeling of this phase transformation have been limited, since its thermodynamics and kinetics are only reasonably well understood. However, the recent development of characterization capabilities and computational techniques, such as CALPHAD, and its applicability to ferrous martensite has not been fully explored yet. In the present work, a thermodynamic method for predicting the martensite start temperature (Ms) of commercial steels is developed. It is based mainly on information on Ms from binary Fe-X systems obtained from experiments using very rapid cooling, and Ms values for lath and plate martensite are treated separately. Comparison with the experimental Ms of several sets of commercial steels indicates that the predictive ability is comparable to models based on experimental information of Ms from commercial steels. A major part of the present work is dedicated to the effect of carbon content on the morphological transition from lath- to plate martensite in steels. A range of metallographic techniques were employed: (1) Optical microscopy to study the apparent morphology; (2) Transmission electron microscopy to study high-carbon plate martensite; (3) Electron backscattered diffraction to study the variant pairing tendency of martensite. The results indicate that a good understanding of the martensitic microstructure can be achieved by combining qualitative metallography with quantitative analysis, such as variant pairing analysis. This type of characterization methodology could easily be extended to any alloying system and may thus facilitate martensite characterization in general. Finally, a minor part addresses inverse bainite, which may form in high-carbon alloys. Its coupling to regular bainite is discussed on the basis of symmetry in the Fe-C phase diagram.  QC 20120824Hero-

Preliminary study: Barkhausen noise evaluation on the Hardening Depth of Induction-hardened carbon steel

Induction hardening depth evaluation by means of Barkhausen noise (BN) technique is one known non-destructive evaluation (NDE). The acquired signal, nevertheless, is not easy to be interpreted owing to information and materials complexity. Current study is initiated from a case in local industry about the quality control of induction hardened camshaft. Certain historical BN data is reviewed, and hypothetical hardening conditions are simulated in order to find out a possible relationship between the acquired signal and the microstructure of the hardened layer. Selected physical properties of these simulated hardened layers were evaluated. Using these data, physical modelling was developed by means of finite element method (FEM). A magnetising unit is modelled and the induced magnetic flux density in the material is simulated. Modelling results were then compared with experimental study. The project work is at the preliminary stage and it is expected that the ultimate model will help to improve the understanding of the BN signal in relations to the induction-hardened depth evaluation

Evolution of Martensite Tetragonality in High-Carbon Steels Revealed by In Situ High-Energy X-Ray Diffraction

The martensitic transformation was studied by in situ and ex situ experiments in two high-carbon, 0.54 and 0.74 wt pct C, steels applying three different cooling rates, 15 °C/s, 5 °C/s, and 0.5 °C/s, in the temperature range around Ms, to improve the understanding of the evolution of martensite tetragonality c/a and phase fraction formed during the transformation. The combination of in situ high-energy X-ray diffraction during controlled cooling and spatially resolved tetragonality c/a determination by electron backscatter diffraction pattern matching was used to study the transformation behavior. The cooling rate and the different Ms for the steels had a clear impact on the martensitic transformation with a decrease in average tetragonality due to stronger autotempering for a decreasing cooling rate and higher Ms. A slower cooling rate also resulted in a lower fraction of martensite at room temperature, but with an increase in fraction of autotempered martensite. Additionally, a heterogeneous distribution of martensite tetragonality was observed for all cooling rates

Influence of batch-to-batch material variations on grindability of a medium‑carbon steel

This study addresses the influence of material variations on the grindability of crankshaft steel. Most previous studies on the effect of material microstructure on grindability involve comparisons of significantly different steel grades. This study, in contrast, is focused on batch-to-batch grindability variations for one steel grade, a scenario frequently occurring in industry where batches from different steel makers are fed into a production line. For this purpose, a batch made of recycled steel and a batch made of ore-based steel were compared with regards to microstructure and grindability under identical grinding and dressing conditions. Although both batches met the same material specifications, microstructural variations were identified in terms of grain size and micro-constituents (inclusions, carbonitrides). While specific grinding energy, residual stress and full-width at half-maximum profiles of ground surfaces were the same for both batches, the recycled batch showed different and unfavorable variation in wheel wear and Barkhausen noise (BN) response. Larger fractions of oxide inclusions and larger grain sizes (affected by carbonitrides) were present in the recycled batch, which were the likely reasons for the differences in wheel wear and BN response, respectively. These findings may aid grindability improvement by steel-grade adjustments, e.g. modification of the distribution and type of inclusions and/or amount of elements forming carbonitrides. Furthermore, the results highlight the importance of understanding and controlling material microstructure, as existing in-line quality by BN control may not always be able to correctly indicate surface integrity, which could lead to misinterpretations (e.g. false part-rejection on the assumption of grinding burn)