Available online at wwwsciencedirect.

com
OCIRNCR

DlRBCT.

JOURNAL OF IRON AND STEEL RESEARCH, INTERNATIONAL. 2006, 13(3) : 36-39, 67

Bainite Transformation Under Continuous Cooling of Nb-Microalloyed Low Carbon Steel

YI Hai-long,
DU Lin-xiu,
WANG Guo-dong, LIU Xiang-hua
(State Key Laboratory of Rolling and Automation, Northeastern University, Shenyang 110004, Iiaoning, China)

Abstract: Utilizing Gleeble-1500 thermomechanical simulator, the influences of hot deformation parameters on continuous cooling bainite transformation in Nb-microalloyed low carbon steel were investigated. The results indicate that bainite starting temperature decreases with raising cooling rate and increases with increasing deformation temperature. Deformation has an accelerative effect on the bainite transformation when the specimens are deformed at 950 %.When the deformation temperature increases, the effect of deformation on bainite starting temperature is weakened. The amount of bainite is influenced by strain, cooling rate, and deformation temperature. When the specimens are deformed below 900 *C, equiaxed ferrites are promoted and the bainite transformation is suppressed. Key words: Nb-microalloyed low carbon steel 8 bainite starting temperature; bainite; equiaxed ferrite; retained austenite

Grain ultra-fining is the main characteristic for new generation C-Mn steels. But the grain refinement will result in the increase of yield ratio of the steel and the steel having lower work-hardening abilityC1**'. In order to obtain high comprehensive properties, the complex strengthening mechanism, including microstructure strengthening and precipitation strengthening, is employed in the development of ultra-fine grained steels. It was reported that introducing some bainite in the matrix of ultra-fine grained ferrite for plain C-Mn steel with micro-Nb is an effective approach to obtain good comprehensive proper tie^[^*^'. So bainite transformation during continuous cooling process after deformation is important for controlling microstructure of the ultra-fine steels. Previous on the austenite/bainite transformation mainly focused on some bainitic steels or alloyed construction steels. Studies about the austenite/bainite transformation, especially the bainitic transformation during continuous cooling process after deformation, of low carbon steels are

seldom available. T h e aim of present study is mainly about the continuous cooling transformation of Nbmicroalloyed low carbon steel with different hot deformation parameters. T h e bainite starting temperatures at different conditions are measured and the microstructure evolutions under different hot deformation parameters are analyzed.

1 Experimental
T h e tested material was a Nb-microalloyed low carbon steel with the composition ( mass percent, %) of C 0.14, Si 0.27, Mn 1.25, P 0.025, S 0.010 and Nb 0.026. Cylindrical specimens (#8 mmX 15 mm) were prepared for hot deformation experiment on Gleeble-1500 thermomechanical simulator. In the tests, the specimens were heated to 1 200 'C and held for 3 min, and then cooled to deformation temperatures (850 'C , 900 "C , 950 'c , 1 000 1 at 10 C/s. After 30 s of holding at deformation temperature, the specimens were compressed into a single hit to different true strains ( 0 , 0. 4, 0. 6 ) at strain rate l / s and held for 10 s after deformation,

"c

Foundation Item,Item Sponsored by High Technology Develob.nent Program of China (863) (2001AA332020) and National Natural Science Foundation of China (50271015) E-mail: longhaiyi- 2004@tom. comi Revised Date: June 8, 2005 Biography:YI Hai-long(1979-), Male, Doctor;

No. 3

Bainite Transformation Under Continuous Cooling of Nb-Microalloyed Low Carbon Steel

37

and then cooled to room temperature at different cooling rates (0. 5 "C/s, 1 C / s , 5 C / s , 10 "C/s, 15 C / s ) . Bainite starting temperatures were measured through thermal dilation method and metallographic method. The substructures of the bainite were observed by H-700 transmission electron microscopy. The microstructures were characterized using an optical microscope.

2
2.1

Results and Discussion

Influence of hot deformation parameters on bainite starting temperature Bainite starting temperatures at different deformation temperatures and different cooling rates are listed in Table 1. From this Table, it is shown that at the same deformation temperature, the bainite starting temperature decreases with increasing cooling rate. A t the same cooling rate, the bainite starting temperature decreases with decreasing deformation temperature, and the following two reasons result in this phenomenon: First, displacive transformation involves the cooperative movements of atoms, and such movements can be restricted by dense lattice defects. Formation of a higher density of defects in the austenite structure at lower temperature suppressed the bainite transformation proceeding by a shear mechanism; Second, as the deformation temperature decreases, more ferrite will be precipitated; the austenite stability increases because of the concentration of carbon in austenite increases, so the deformation will have stabilized effects on bainite transformation. Fig. 1 shows the relationship between cooling rate and bainite starting temperature for different strains at 950 "C and 1 000 "C. From this figure, the bainite starting temperature decreases as the cooling rate increases and increases as the strain increases. For the specimens deformed at 950 ' C , the bainite starting temperature of the specimens deformed with strain of 0. 6 is about 10 'C higher than that of undeformed specimens. But for the specimens deformed at
Table 1 Bainite starting temperature of samples *C deformed with strain of 0 . 4
Deformation temperature/% 1000

575

565

555

I
0

8 12 Cooling rale/(C.s-')

16

Fig. 1

Relationship between cooling rate and bainite transformation temperature for different true strains at 950 "c and 1 000 'c

Cooling rate/( C

s-I )

1
575
570

5
570

10
559 555 550
545

15
~_____

550

950 900 850

565 560 555

544
540

565 560

535

1 000 "C , the bainite starting temperature changes slightly when the specimens are deformed, that is t o say, deformation at 1 000 'C has little influence on bainite starting temperature. Therefore, deformation has an accelerated effect on the bainite transformation when the specimens are deformed at 950 'C. When the deformation temperature increases, the effects of deformation on bainite starting temperature diminish. At a fixed temperature, bainite starting temperature is increased with increasing strain; as shown in Fig. 1 ( a ) , this phenomenon contradicts the description above. But Maki TC15'found that ausforming markedly increases the rate of transformation of upper bainite, and has a smaller effect on the lower bainite reaction. The bainite reaction is accompanied by carbon diffusion and formation of carbides during the transformation. The structural defects were produced by deformation, and most of the dislocations introduced into austenite can also act as nucleation sites. The defects increased with the increase of strain. This promotes carbide formation during bainite transformation and also stimulates the nucle-

38

Journal of Iron and Steel Research, International

Vol. 13

ation of bainite ferrite, which requires formation of areas with decreased carbon c ~ n c e n t r a t i o n " ~ ~ . So bainite transformation is accelerated by deformed austenite, and the bainite starting temperature increases with increasing strain. The higher the deformation. temperature, the faster the defect density decreases and as a result, the degree of acceleration of austenite transformation to ferrite is reduced; so the influence of strain on bainite starting temperature diminishesC163. order to explain this accurately, In experimental studies should be carried out in depth.

2.2

Influence of hot deformation parameters on bainite Fig. 2 shows the microstructures of the steel obtained from the specimens deformed with strain of 0. 4 at 1 000 IC with different cooling rates. It can be observed that when the cooling rate is 0.5 C / s , the amount of bainite is little, almost no bainite transformation, and the amount of bainite increases with increasing cooling rate. Fig. 3 is the optical micrographs showing the microstructures of the specimens deformed at 950 "C

with different amount of strains and cooled to the room temperature at 1 C / s . From Fig. 3 , the amount of bainite obviously reduces with the increase of strain. This is because the increase of strain increases vacancy, dislocation and other crystal defects, the sites of heterogeneous nucleation increase, and the stability of austenite reduces, so the ferrite nucleation is facilitated, the amount of ferrite increases and the amount of bainite decreases. This is distinctively different from the reduction of bainite caused by austenite machinery stability. Fig. 4 shows the microstructures of the steel obtained from the specimens deformed with strain of 0.4 at different temperatures. It can be found that the microstructures of the specimens deformed at 1 000 O C and 950 'C are ferrite and bainite, and the morphology of ferrite is acicular ferrite and small amount of equiaxed ferrite. When deformation temperature decreases to 900 'C and 850 OC, some martensites are found in the microstructures and the equiaxed ferrite increases and the bainite decreases. The lath of bainite is refined with decreasing temperature, as shown in Fig. 5. Therefore, it can be considered that

(a)

0.5 C / s ;

(b) 1 C/s;

(c) 5 C / s

Fig. 2

Microstructures of specimens deformed at 1 000 'c with strain of 0 . 4 for different cooling rates

( a ) 0;

( b ) 0.4;

( c ) 0.6

Fig. 3

Microstructures of specimens deformed at 950C and cooled at 1 "C /s for different strains

No. 3

Hainite Transformation Under Continuous Cooling of Nb-Microalloyed Low Carbon Steel

39

( a ) 850

Y:;

Fig. 4

(b) 900 C ; (c) 950 C i ( d ) 1 000 C Microstructures of specimens deformed with strain of 0 . 4 at different temperatures

( a ) 850 % ;

Fig. 5

when the specimens are deformed below 900 C the , formation of equiaxed ferrite is facilitated, and the stability of untransformed austenite increases, so the bainite transformation is hindered. Some retained austenite is also observed in the microstructure of specimen deformed at 1 000 C through T E M , as shown in Fig. 6. This is primarily due to the occurrence of static recrystallization during short delay time after deformation at high temperature, which could increase the stability of austenite and make some austenite retained at the end of transformation.

(b) 900 %; ( c ) 950 % ; (d) 1000 C TEM micrographs of bainite of specimens deformed with strain of 0.4 at different temperatures

Conclusions

( 1 ) Bainite starting temperature decreases with raising cooling rate, and increases with the increase of deformation temperature because of the increase of density of defects and austenite stability. Deformation has an accelerative effect on the bainite transformation when the specimens are deformed at 950 C. When the deformation temperature increases, the effect of deformation on bainite starting temperature is weakened.

Fig. 6

Morphology and diffraction pattern of retained austenite in specimen

(Continued on Page 67)

Weldability a n d M i c r o s t r u c t u r e of Nickel-Silicon Based Alloys Ian J Polmear, Heinz K Hardy. Solid Solution Strengthening of NiAl Single Crystals [J]. J Inst Metals, 1955-56, 84: 23-28. Liu C T, White C I-, Horton. Effect of Boron on GrainBoundaries in Ni3Al [J]. Acta Metall, 1985, 33: 213-229. Agarwal D C , Brill U. Plasma Brazing Process Keeps Zinc on Galvanized Sheet [J]. Advanced Materials and Processes. 2000, Oct. 31-34. White C I., Stein D F. Sulfur Segregation to Grain Boundaries in Ni/sub 3/A1 and Ni/sub 3/(A1. Ti) Alloys [J]. Metall Trans, 1978, A9: 13-18. Takasugi T, Izumi 0 , Masahashi N. Electronic and Structural Studies of Grain Boundary Strength and Fracture in 11/72 O r dered Alloys-ii. On the Effect of Third Elements in ni//3al Alloy [J]. Acta Metallurgica. 1985. 33(7) : 1259-1269. Takasugi T, Izumi 0. Electronic and Structural Studies of Grain Boundary Strength and Fracture in l1//2 Ordered Al loys-i. On Binary a 1 3 b Alloys [J]. Acta Metallurgica, 1985. 3 3 ( 7 ) : 1247-1258.

67

Takasugi T , Shindo D, Izumi 0, et al. Metallographic and Structural Observations in the PseudwBinary Section NiSSiNi3Ti of the Ni-Si-Ti System [J]. Acta Metallurgica, 1990, 38(5): 739-745. Owczarski W A , Duvall D S, Sullivan C P. A Model for HeatAffected Zone Cracking in Nickel-Base Superalloys [J]. Welding Journal, 1966. 45(4): 145-153. Rosen S, Goebel J A. Crystal Structure of Nickel-Rich Nickel Aluminum and Martensitic Nickel Aluminum [J]. Trans Metall Soc/AIME, 1968, 242: 722-724. Lehockey E M , Palumbo G , Lin P. Improving the Weldability and Service Performance of Nickel- and Iron-Based Superalloys by Grain Boundary Engineering [J]. Metallurgical and M a t e rials Transactions A: Physical Metallurgy and Materials Science, 1998, 29A(12): 3069-3079. ZHANG Shan-hong. T h e Development of Nickel Silicide Based Alloy for Sulfuric Acid Application [D]. Rolla, USA: University of Missouri-Rolla, 2000.

(Continued from Page 39) ( 2 ) The amount of bainite is influenced by strain, cooling rate, and deformation temperature because these factors influence the stability of austenite. ( 3 ) When the specimens are deformed below 900 'C , the formation of equiaxed ferrite is facilitated and the bainite transformation is hindered. Some retained austenite is observed in the microstructure of specimen deformed at 1 000 'C.
References :
c11

c21

C31

c41
C51

C6l

Hodgson P D, Hickson M R , Gibbs R K. Ultrafine Ferrite in Scripta Materialia. 1999, 40(10): 1179-1184. CAI Ai-guo. MicrostructureStrength Relationships in Nb-V Microalloyed Medium Carbon Steel [J]. Journal of Iron and Steel Research, 1996, 8 ( 2 ) : 35-39 (in Chinese). LIU Xiang-hua, DU Lin-xiu, H U Yan-hui, et al. Development of 500 MPa Super Steel Strip [A]. T h e Chinese Society for Metals (CSM), Central Iron and Steel Research Institute ( C I S R I ) , Shanghai Baosteel Group Corporation (Baosteel) , eds. Second International Conference on Advanced Structural Steels (ICASS 2004) [C]. Shanghai: T h e Chinese Society for Metals ( C S M ) , 2004. 200-203. H U Yan-hui, DU Lin-xiu, G A O Cai-ru, et al. Industrial Trials of 500 MPa Supersteel [J]. Iron and Steel, 2004, 39(10) : 54-58 (in Chinese). Yang J R , Huang C Y, Hsieh W H. Mechanical Stabilization of Austenite Against Bainitic Reaction in Fe-Mn-Si-C Bainitic Steel [J]. Mater Trans JIM, 1996. 37(4): 579-585. I i u D S , Wang G D. Effect of Cooling Rate and Compressive
L o w Carbon Steel [J].

Deformation of Austenite on Bainite Transformation and Microstructure for Plastic Die AISI P20 Steel [J]. ISIJ International, 1998, 3 8 ( 5 ) : 482-488. Liu D S , Wang G D. Mechanical Stabilization of Deformed Austenite During Continuous Cooling Transformation in a CMn-CrNi-Mo Plastic Die Steel [J]. Acta Metallurgica Sinica, 1998, 11: 93-99. Yasuya Ohmori. Crystallographic Aspects of Bainite T r a n s f o r mation in Steels [J]. Scripta Materialia, 2002, 47(2) : 201206. Larn R H I Yang J R. T h e Effect of Compressive Deformation of Austenite on the Bainitic Ferrite Transformation in Fe-MnSi-C Steels [J]. Materials Science and Engineering, 2000, A278(3): 278-291. Feng H S, Yang J . T h e Mechanism of Bainite Transforma3 tion in Steels [J]. Scripta Materialia, 2002, 47(2): 157-162. Muddle B C. Nie J F. Formation of Bainite a s a DiffusionalDisplacive Phase Transformation [J]. Scripta Materialia, 20029 47(2): 189-192. Lawrynowicz Z. Transformation From Upper to Lower Bainite in FeC-Cr Steel [J]. Materials Science and Technology, 2004. 20(11): 1447-1454. Chang L C. Microstructures and Reaction Kinetics of Bainite Transformation in Si-Rich Steels [J]. Materials Science and Engineering A , 2004, 368(1-2): 175-182. Khlestov V M , Konopleva E V. Kinetics of Austenite Transformation During Thermomechanical Processes [J]. Canadian Metallurgical Quarterly, 1998, 37(2) : 75-88. Maki T. Physical Metallurgy of Direct-Quenched Steels [J]. Metals and Materials Society, 1993: 3-16. Shipway P H I Bhadeshia H K D H. Mechanical Stabilization of Bainite [J]. Materials Science and Technology, 1995, 11 (11): 1116-1128.