Advances in Phase Transformation Behavior of Steels

A special issue of Metals (ISSN 2075-4701). This special issue belongs to the section "Metal Casting, Forming and Heat Treatment".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2024) | Viewed by 1556

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Guest Editor
Thermomechanical Processing Group, Materials and Manufacturing Division, Universidad de Navarra and Ceit-BRTA, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
Interests: steels; thermomechanical treatments; complex microstructures; mechanical behavior; microstructure physical and numerical modelling; electron microscopy
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Dear Colleagues,

Steels are complex based on the assessment of their microstructures. A wide variety of microstructures can be achieved through a proper selection of chemical compositions, processing strategies and/or a combination of both. Specifically, phase transformation plays a dominant role in the development of such microstructures, which in turn controls the steel properties. So far, remarkable advances in the understanding and the control of phase transformation have allowed to improve the quality of the products or the industrial productivity, among others.

This Special Issue on “Advances in Phase Transformation Behavior of Steels” is devoted to the latest developments and achievements as well as to critical reviews related to phase transformation in steels. We strongly encourage the submission of research that tackles new observations on the phase transformations and characterization of multiphase steel microstructure with the help of newly developed techniques or the application of various techniques in a smart way, the modelling of phase transformation either under processing or in-service conditions, the application of processing and/or modelling strategies to optimize steel properties through controlled phase transformation, etc.

The processing–microstructure–property relationships of steels continue to be one of the most challenging topics in steel research as the difficulty in understanding the subtle details of phase transformation reactions and the variety of attainable microstructures and properties make this research field a perpetually inspiring issue.

Dr. Denis Jorge-Badiola
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • steels
  • phase transformations
  • multiphase steels
  • characterization techniques
  • modelling transformation
  • alloying

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

23 pages, 15459 KiB  
Article
Modeling Microstructure Development upon Continuous Cooling of 42CrMo4 Steel Grade for Large-Size Components
by Sergio Fernandez-Sanchez, Amaia Iza-Mendia and Denis Jorge-Badiola
Metals 2024, 14(10), 1096; https://doi.org/10.3390/met14101096 - 24 Sep 2024
Viewed by 469
Abstract
42CrMo4-type steel grades are widely used in a great variety of components that require ad hoc mechanical properties. However, due to the dimensions of large components and the previous thermomechanical treatments, the presence of heterogeneities in the chemical compositions are expected to impact [...] Read more.
42CrMo4-type steel grades are widely used in a great variety of components that require ad hoc mechanical properties. However, due to the dimensions of large components and the previous thermomechanical treatments, the presence of heterogeneities in the chemical compositions are expected to impact those mechanical properties. In the present work, a detailed analysis of phase transformation behavior upon cooling was carried out through a dilatometry test on samples of 42CrMo4 belonging to a component that has a non-homogeneous chemical distribution. The analysis of the dilatation signals and the quantitative metallography shows a rather complex behavior depending on the cooling rate as well as on the region of observation. Two different phase transformation models based on Li’s approach were applied to the present composition to determine the CCT curve as well as the fraction of the microconstituents. An extensive discussion was carried out on some aspects about Kirkaldy-based approaches that need to be improved so as to attain more reliable quantitative results when modeling phase transformations in heterogenous systems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Phase Transformation Behavior of Steels)
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16 pages, 6983 KiB  
Article
Effects of Different Austenitising Conditions on the Strength–Ductility Balance in a High-Strength Low-Alloy Steel
by Liang Luo, Duyu Dong, Zheng Jiang, Tao Chen and Yimin Li
Metals 2024, 14(8), 850; https://doi.org/10.3390/met14080850 - 25 Jul 2024
Viewed by 770
Abstract
With the addition of microalloy elements to a high-strength low-alloy (HSLA) steel, various fine particles of carbides and nitrides are formed, which increase the matrix strength. These precipitates play a crucial role in precipitation strengthening. However, the role of precipitates in microstructural refinement [...] Read more.
With the addition of microalloy elements to a high-strength low-alloy (HSLA) steel, various fine particles of carbides and nitrides are formed, which increase the matrix strength. These precipitates play a crucial role in precipitation strengthening. However, the role of precipitates in microstructural refinement is frequently overlooked. In this study, a series of hot-rolled HSLA steel samples were reheated to different temperatures above the austenite transformation point for a specified period to refine austenite grains via precipitation, then cooled to a dual-phase (austenitic/ferritic) region, and finally air-cooled to room temperature. The influences of different austenitising conditions on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the HSLA steel were examined. When a hot-rolled sample was reheated to 15 °C above the austenitic transition temperature for 20 min and then cooled to 25 °C below the austenitic transition temperature for 25 min, the most low-angle boundaries were formed, and the smallest effective grain size was achieved. Meanwhile, compared with the hot-rolled sample, the tensile and yield strengths of the reheated sample increased by 12.3% and 3.4%, respectively, while the elongation increased by 162.5%, exhibiting a good strength–ductility balance. By adopting an appropriate austenitising process, precipitates can refine the crystalline grains during austenitisation, thereby enhancing the comprehensive mechanical properties of the steel. Meanwhile, excessively high austenitising temperatures lead to the coarsening of the steel microstructure, decreasing the microstructural refinement efficiency via precipitation and consequently degrading the comprehensive mechanical properties of the steel. The findings provide valuable insights into the preparation process design of such steels or other steels with similar microstructures. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Phase Transformation Behavior of Steels)
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