Abstract
Microstructural evolution of inverse bainite during isothermal bainite transformation of a hypereutectoid low-alloy steel at 773 K (500 °C) was investigated through a series of interrupted isothermal experiments using a quench dilatometer. Microstructural characterization revealed that the inverse bainitic transformation starts by the nucleation of cementite (Fe3C) from parent austenite as a midrib in the bainitic microstructure. The inverse bainite becomes “degenerated” to typical upper bainite at prolonged transformation times. Crystallographic orientation relationships between the individual phases of inverse bainite microstructure were found to obey
Furthermore, the crystallographic orientation deviations between the individual phases of inverse bainite microstructure suggest that the secondary carbide nucleation occurs from the inverse bainitic ferrite. Thermodynamic driving force calculations provide an explanation for the observed nucleation sequence in inverse bainite. The degeneracy of inverse bainite microstructure to upper bainite at prolonged transformation times is likely due to the effects of cementite midrib dissolution at the early stage and secondary carbide coarsening at the later stage.
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RITA L78 is a trademark of LINSEIS—Thermal Analysis Equipment Manufacturer, Germany.
ECOMET is a trademark of Buehler—Metallography Equipment & Supplies for Sample Preparation, IL, USA.
SIGMA is a trademark of Carl Zeiss optical and optoelectronic technology, Germany.
Lower load was used to characterize the hardness bainitic regions, whose fractions were low, especially at lower isothermal holding time (Figure 2(a)). The hardness measurements are validated using an instrumented indentation technique.
It should be noted that ThermoCalc expresses the driving force per mole of the product phase as the decrease in Gibb’s free energy for the formation the product phase from the supersaturated parent phase (−ΔGm). Thus, a negative driving force predicted by ThermoCalc implies that the reaction raises the Gibb’s free energy of the system and the reaction will not take place.
THERMOCALC is a trademark of ThermoCalc Software Inc., Sweden.
Refer to footnote in Section II.
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Kannan, R., Wang, Y. & Li, L. Microstructural Evolution of Inverse Bainite in a Hypereutectoid Low-Alloy Steel. Metall Mater Trans A 48, 6038–6054 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-017-4373-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-017-4373-6