Zesheng Yan

Precipitation behavior and martensite lath coarsening during tempering of T/P92 ferritic heat-resistant steel

Tempering is an important process for T/P92 ferritic heat-resistant steel from the viewpoint of microstructure control, as it facilitates the formation of final tempered martensite under serving conditions. In this study, we have gained deeper insights on the mechanism underlying the microstructural evolution during tempering treatment, including the precipitation of carbides and the coarsening of martensite laths, as systematically analyzed by optical microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. The chemical composition of the precipitates was analyzed using energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. Results indicate the formation of M3C (cementite) precipitates under normalized conditions. However, they tend to dissolve within a short time of tempering, owing to their low thermal stability. This phenomenon was substantiated by X-ray diffraction analysis. Besides, we could observe the precipitation of fine carbonitrides (MX) along the dislocations. The mechanism of carbon diffusion controlled growth of M23C6 can be expressed by the Zener’s equation. The movement of Y-junctions was determined to be the fundamental mechanism underlying the martensite lath coarsening process. Vickers hardness was estimated to determine their mechanical properties. Based on the comprehensive analysis of both the micro-structural evolution and hardness variation, the process of tempering can be separated into three steps.

Development of ferrite/bainite bands and study of bainite transformation retardation in HSLA steel during continuous cooling

The development of banded structure in HSLA steel during continuous cooling has been systematically studied using dilatometry and microstructural observations. At low cooling rates (<10 °C/min), the microstructure contains alternating bands of ferrite and a mixture of pearlite and bainite. At higher cooling rate (>10 °C/min), the formation of pearlite is suppressed, and the corresponding microstructure consists of banded ferrite and bainite. Dilatometric analysis indicates that as ferrite and pearlite transformation at low rates (or ferrite transformation at higher rates) completes, Manganese (Mn) and Carbon (C) concentration in austenite can retard the bainitic transformation and result in the transformation stagnancy phenomenon. The magnitude of retardation and the bainite morphology are affected by Mn and C concentration. The increased cooling rate decreases Mn and C content in bainite, and then the length of the stagnant stage decreases and bainite morphology changes from lower bainite to acicular ferrite.

Effect of acicular ferrite on banded structures in low-carbon microalloyed steel

The effect of acicular ferrite (AF) on banded structures in low-carbon microalloyed steel with Mn segregation during both isothermal transformation and continuous cooling processes was studied by dilatometry and microscopic observation. With respect to the isothermal transformation process, the specimen isothermed at 550°C consisted of AF in Mn-poor bands and martensite in Mn-rich bands, whereas the specimen isothermed at 450°C exhibited two different morphologies of AF that appeared as bands. At a continuous cooling rate in the range of 4 to 50°C/s, a mixture of AF and martensite formed in both segregated bands, and the volume fraction of martensite in Mn-rich bands was always higher than that in Mn-poor bands. An increased cooling rate resulted in a decrease in the difference of martensite volume fraction between Mn-rich and Mn-poor bands and thereby leaded to less distinct microstructural banding. The results show that Mn segregation and cooling rate strongly affect the formation of AF-containing banded structures. The formation mechanism of microstructural banding was also discussed.

Research on splitting phenomenon of isochronal martensitic transformation in T91 ferritic steel

T91 steel is a representative type of ferritic heat-resistant steel currently used in power plant components, and is a potential candidate for structural steel in nuclear reactors. The isochronal martensitic transformation behaviors during continuous cooling after austenitization in T91 ferritic steel were systematically investigated by high-resolution dilatometry and microstructure observation. The splitting phenomenon of martensitic transformation is accompanied with the precipitation of needle-like M3C particles, which is suppressed by rapid cooling after austenitization. The appearance of this splitting is ascribed to the concentration gradient caused by the consumption of alloy element in process of the formation of M3C. This concentration gradient results in the appearance of wide martensitic laths ahead of the generation of normally narrow laths. These two types of martensitic laths possess different M s (martensitic start transformation) temperatures, which are attributed to the splitting transformation phenomenon.

Effect of austenisation temperature on phase transformation in low carbon microalloyed pipeline steel

Abstract A detailed investigation was carried out on the effect of austenisation temperature on the phase transformation in X65 microalloyed pipeline steel during continuous cooling at a rate of 200°C min−1 by means of high resolution dilatometric measurement and microstructure observation. The results showed that with austenisation temperature increasing in the range of 850–1000°C, phase transformation temperature range shifts to lower temperatures and the formation of acicular ferrite phase is promoted. Furthermore, the increase in austenisation temperature results in refined grains after continuous cooling to room temperature, associating with the appearance of acicular ferrite structure in steel. The present investigation is helpful to optimise the parameters of rolling or heat treatment technology in industrial production of X65 steel.

Bainite Formation Kinetics During Isothermal Holding in Modified High Cr Ferritic Steel

Microstructural observation and high-resolution dilatometry has been employed to investigate the course of isothermal holding at various temperatures during cooling after austenization in a modified high Cr ferritic steel. The formation of bainite during isothermal holding was identified. The amount of bainite increases as transformation temperature decreases. The phenomenon of thermal stabilization of austenite disappears after isothermal holding due to the formation of bainite. The kinetics of incomplete bainite transformation was described by a displacive model in view of autocatalytic nucleation. Kinetics analysis suggests that reduction of holding temperature promotes to bainite transformation by means of an increase in the number of embryos for autocatalytic nucleation and a decrease in activation energy.

Effect of dopant on microstructure and conductivity of ZnO thin film

Abstract Al and Ti doped ZnO thin films have been prepared by direct current magnetron cosputtering and thermal oxidation. The effects of these dopants on the microstructural, morphological and electrical properties of deposited films have been studied. The SEM demonstrated that the undoped ZnO thin film consisted of globular ZnO with particle size of ∼100 nm. Scanning electron microscopy EDX analysis confirmed that the dopant content in the ZnO–Al and ZnO–Ti thin film was 2·78 and 3·75 at-% respectively. The particle in the ZnO–Ti thin film was blocky or granular with thorns and its size was several micrometers, while the particle in ZnO–Al thin film was porous granular and the size was ∼2 μm. Resistance value testing and R/R calculation revealed that pure ZnO thin film had the highest gas sensitivity.

Athermal martensite transformation of modified high Cr ferritic heat resistant steel undergoing different quenching temperatures

Abstract The thermal dilation behaviours of modified high Cr ferritic heat resistant steel quenched at different temperatures were employed to investigate the kinetics of martensite transformation. The martensite fraction and formation rate were obtained as a function of temperature. A model considering ‘spread’ martensites was introduced to explore the influence of quenching temperatures on martensite transformation. Both onset and offset temperatures of martensite formation decrease with the increase in quenching temperatures, and the reaction rate increases rapidly at the beginning of transformation and reaches a peak when a small quantity of martensite forms. The fitted data based on the proposed phase transformation model indicated that the width/length ratio of martensite laths decreases with the increase in quenching temperatures.

Phase transformations in WB36 heat resistant steel under continuous cooling conditions

Abstract Aiming to optimise the thermal treatment technology of WB36 heat resistant steel, the characteristics of phase transformations during continuous cooling at 5–2000°C min−1 were investigated by means of microstructure observation and dilatometric measurements. The continuous cooling transformation diagram of WB36 heat resistant steel was obtained, as well as the fractions of different transformation products obtained under various cooling conditions. The results showed that the transformation products in continuously cooled WB36 heat resistant steel involve polygonal ferrite, pearlite, granular bainite and lath martensite, with increasing cooling rates from 5 to 2000°C min−1. Owing to the Mo addition to the steel, the super cooled austenite in WB36 heat resistant steel was stabilised significantly, and granular bainite can be obtained in a wide range of cooling rate. However, the substructures of granular bainite vary significantly with the increase in cooling rate, including matrix morphology and the distribution of M/A islands in the matrix.