Arun Kumar Rai

Differential scanning calorimetry study of diffusional and martensitic phase transformations in some 9 wt-%Cr low carbon ferritic steels

Abstract The results of a comprehensive characterisation study of different phase transformations that take place upon heating and cooling in some low carbon, 9 wt-%Cr steels with varying concentrations of microalloying additions are presented in this paper. The steels investigated include: standard 9Cr–1Mo grade, V and Nb added modified 9Cr variety, controlled silicon added versions of plain 9Cr variety, (Ni+Mn) content controlled modified 9Cr welding consumables and one composition of W, Ta added reduced activation steel. The various on-heating diffusional phase changes up to the melting range and subsequent rapid cooling induced martensitic transformations are investigated in a controlled manner using differential scanning calorimetry under different heating and cooling rates, in the range 1–100 K min−1. In addition to the accurate determination of Ac1, Ac3, M23C6, MX carbide dissolution and δ-ferrite formation temperatures upon heating, the melting range and the associated fusion enthalpy have also been established for these steels. The effect of prolonged thermal aging at temperatures of 823–873 K on austenite formation characteristics has also been investigated for standard and modified 9Cr–1Mo steels. The critical cooling rate for the formation of martensite on cooling from single phase austenite region is estimated to be about 4–5 K min−1 for all 9Cr steels investigated in this study. The effect of holding at 1273 K in the austenite region on martensite start temperature Ms, has also been evaluated as a part of this study. The experimental results are discussed in the light of the prevailing understanding of the physical metallurgy of high chromium low carbon steels.

Measurement of high temperature phase stability and thermophysical properties of alloy 740

In the present study, the characterisation of phase stability and measurement of different thermophysical properties of alloy 740 has been carried out. The transformation temperatures including liquidus/solidus and corresponding enthalpy of transformation have been measured for different phase changes up to melting using dynamic calorimetry. Further, the enthalpy increment data have been measured in the temperature range of 473–1473 K to obtain the heat capacity using static calorimetry. The present calorimetric data have been analysed in corroboration with the results obtained using JMatPro and Thermo-Calc simulation. In addition, the temperature dependence of other thermophysical properties such as thermal expansivity, density, thermal diffusivity and thermal conductivity are also measured in the range of 300–1473 K using thermomechanical analyser and laser flash method.

Thermodynamic Stability of Fe-Cr Binary System: The Crucial Role of Magnetic Contribution as Elucidated by Calorimetric Measurements

The influence of magnetic interactions on high temperature thermodynamic stability of Fe-Cr binary system has been analysed in the light of accurate isothermal calorimetry measurements (400-1473 K) on Fe-20wt.%Cr alloy. The onset of two successive principal transformations namely, (i) α(Fe-rich bcc)+α(Cr rich bcc)α(HT bcc) at 702±10 K; and (ii) αferroαpara at 925 ±10 K, with their associated enthalpy effects (ΔoHmag = 2 kJ mol -1; Cpmag = 20 J mol-1 K-1) have been clearly delineated by the measured enthalpy variation with temperature. A precise quantification of magnetic contribution to high temperature thermodynamic stability has been attempted using physically based modelling approach.

Modelling the role of nucleation on recrystallization kinetics: A cellular automata approach

In present study, a two dimensional cellular automata (CA) simulation has been carried out to study the effect of nucleation mode on the kinetics of recrystallization and microstructure evolution in an austenitic stainless steel. Two different nucleation modes i.e. site saturation and continuous nucleation with interface control growth mechanism has been considered in this modified CA algorithm. The observed Avrami exponent for both nucleation modes shows a better agreement with the theoretical predicted values. The site saturated nucleation mode shows a nearly consistent value of Avrami exponent, whereas in the case of continuous nucleation the exponent shows a little variation during transformation. The simulations in the present work can be applied for the optimization of microstructure and properties in austenitic steels.