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Process optimization of additively manufactured Ti–6Al–4V alloy is an important aspect of the production of engineered, high-performance parts for the aerospace and medical industries. In this study, the microstructural evolution and mechanical properties of direct energy deposition processed Ti–6Al–4V alloy were investigated using different processing parameters. Experimental analyses revealed that the line energy density corresponding to the processing parameters of the direct energy deposition process influences the properties of additively manufactured Ti–6Al–4V alloy. First, an optimal line energy density limits the incidence and size of voids resulting from a lack of fusion to enhance both alloy strength and ductility. Second, an excessively high energy density induces the coarsening of prior-β grains to impair both alloy strength with the Hall–Petch relationship and alloy ductility due to the plastic deformation instability caused by the limited number of grains. These results indicate that both the extent of fusion and prior-β grain size affect the mechanical properties of additively manufactured Ti–6Al–4V alloy. Moreover, the results demonstrate the utility of the line energy density-based approach in determining the optimal processing parameters for realizing high-performance materials.

The rapid melting and solidification cycle in additive manufacturing creates a non-equilibrium environment that induces metastable microstructures. These metastable microstructures include solute heterogeneity, dislocation cell structure and nano-sized precipitation, which contributes to the strength of additively manufactured alloys. Because the presence of metastable microstructure contributes to the mechanical property enhancement of additively manufactured alloy, quantification and estimation of strength by metastable microstructure becomes important issue. In this study, the role of dislocation cell structure on the mechanical property of additively manufactured stainless steels was investigated. The evolved cell networks not only interrupted dislocation gliding, but also acted as crack propagation paths during plastic deformation. The finer cell networks found in the additively manufacture 304L stainless steels induced more interactions with dislocations than those found in the additively manufacture 316L stainless steels, and that is related to the higher strength during tensile test. This result demonstrates the dislocation cell structure is a main strengthening mechanism for additively manufactured materials and the modified Hall–Petch hardening model successfully estimate the strengthening by cell boundaries.

The correlation between microstructure and tensile properties of selective laser melting (SLM) processed STS 316L and Inconel 718 were investigated at various heights (top, middle and bottom) and planes (YZ, ZX and XY). Columnar grains and dendrites were formed by directional growth during solidification. The average melt pool width and depth, and scan track width were similar in both specimens due to fixed processing parameters. SLM Inconel 718 has moderate tensile strength (1165 MPa) and tensile elongation (11.5%), whereas SLM STS 316L has outstanding tensile strength (656 MPa) and tensile elongation (75%) compared to other SLM processed STS 316L. Fine columnar diameter (0.5 μm) and dense microstructures (porosity: 0.35%) in SLM STS 316L promoted the enhancement of tensile elongation by suitable processing condition. Fractographic analysis suggested that the lack of fusion pore with unmelted powder should be avoided to increase tensile properties by controlling processing parameters.

The microstructural evolution of Al–Zn–Mg–Cu alloys has been investigated for the homogenization time effect on the texture, grain orientation and dislocation density. The Al–Zn–Mg–Cu alloys were casted and homogenized for 4, 8, 16 and 24 hours. Electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) analysis was conducted to characterize the microstructural behavior. Micropillars were fabricated using focused ion beam (FIB) milling in grains of specific crystallographic orientations. Coarse precipitations in the grain boundaries are S (Al2CuMg) and T (Al2Mg3Zn3) phases verified by scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) observation. With increasing homogenization time, equiaxed cell sizes increased. The volume fraction of S and T phases decreased with the diffusion of atomic elements into matrix. The Vickers hardness and tensile strength values decreased with homogenization temperature. The micropillar compression analysis was compared to macro tensile test results to understand the size effect and strain burst phenomenon on the mechanical properties of Al–Zn–Mg–Cu alloys.

Boron doping with an adequate concentration is highly desirable for alloy development because it profoundly improves the material's interface cohesion via interfacial segregation. However, scientific and applicable potentials of soluble boron that resides at the alloy internal grains are generally overlooked. Here we report a strategy for overcoming the typically low strengths of face-centered cubic high-entropy alloys (HEAs) through exploiting soluble boron instead of the interfacial boron. We find that soluble boron increases stress/strain field at the recrystallized HEA grain structure, leading to the generation of short-range order (SRO) in those deformation structure under load at 77 K. The highly increased degree of SRO at planar dislocation slip band that forms during straining, proved by electron microscopy and synchrotron X-ray diffraction, strengthens a typical non-equimolar Fe40Mn40Co10Cr10 (at%) HEA, particularly increasing yield strengths by ∼32%, to ∼1.1 GPa compared to those of boron-free reference materials with similar grain sizes. The advent of deformation-induced SRO domains causes severe lattice distortion (specifically, contraction), leading to the increased cryogenic yield strength of ∼210 MPa, but generating micro-voids at grain boundaries. This study on deformation-induced SRO via boron advances the fundamental understanding of SRO impacts on HEA grains and mechanical properties at cryogenic temperatures, which may pave a general pathway for developing a wide range of ultrastrong alloys for cryogenic applications.

Despite recent progress in achieving high mechanical properties of metal additive manufacturing, the low productivity represented by slow manufacturing speeds still remains a bottleneck of the technology. We improved the scanning speed of selective laser melting (SLM) with Ti-6Al-4V up to 1800 mm/s for high printing speed with affordable mechanical properties. In addition, the hot isostatic pressing (HIP) process was applied as post-treatment process to remove porosity of the high-speed printed SLM specimens. However, the HIP process caused a microstructural change from α′-lath martensite to a Widmanstӓtten α-lamellar structure. This microstructural change was most pronounced on the surface area and caused inter-lamellar fracture. Here, we investigate this phenomenon with microstructural and computational analysis. The results indicate that this deterioration phenomenon is highly dependent on surface roughness, which can be controlled with a build angle set-up.

Steel sheet is often shaped by straining to form a final product, and deformation process can influence the fatigue resistance. In this study, high cycle fatigue (HCF) and fatigue crack propagation (FCP) behaviors of precipitation hardened (PH) high strength steel with pre-straining levels of 0, 5 and 9% were investigated. Regardless of pre-straining level, fatigue cracks were found to be initiated at surface pits formed during pickling. The effect of pre-straining was not significant on the HCF resistance of PH steel, while the FCP rates increased with increasing level of pre-straining only in low and intermediate ΔK regimes. It was suggested that marginal increase on HCF resistance of PH steel was due to the combined effect of enhanced resistance to crack initiation and reduced resistance to crack propagation with pre-straining. The effect of pre-straining on HCF and FCP behavior of PH steel was discussed based on micrographic and fractographic observations.

An artificial neural network (ANN) model is developed for the analysis and simulation of correlation between flake powder metallurgy parameters and properties of AA2024-SiC nanocomposites. The input parameters of the model are AA 2024 matrix size, ball milling time, and weight percentage of SiC nanoparticles and the output parameters are density and hardness. The model can predict the density and hardness of the unseen test data with a correlation of 0.986 beyond the experimental data. A user interface is designed to predict properties at new instances. We have used the model to simulate the individual as well as the combined influence of parameters on the properties. Moreover, we have analyzed the calculated results from the powder metallurgical point of view. The developed model can be used as a guide for further composite development.

General design concept used in high-entropy alloys (HEAs) have deviated from forming an fcc single phase to utilizing hard intermetallic phases in ductile fcc matrix. Here, we effectively exploited strengthening effects of a brittle intermetallic sigma (σ) phase to improve cryogenic tensile properties of a non-equi-atomic ductile VCrFeNi four-component HEA. We preferentially selected vanadium as a candidate alloying element to efficiently produce the σ phase through computational thermodynamic approach. This σ phase has beneficial effects on grain refinement through retardation of grain growth due to grain-boundary pinning, thereby leading to yield strength of 0.79–0.93 GPa. The extensive strain hardening results in tensile strength of 1.33–1.49 GPa and ductility of 23–47% at cryogenic temperature, which are enabled by nano-sized dislocation substructures rather than deformation twinning. Our results demonstrate how the intermetallic σ phase, which has been avoided in typical HEAs because of ductility deterioration, could be used in high strength HEA design.

The fatigue crack propagation (FCP) behavior of β-annealed Ti-6Al-4V (Ti64) alloy was examined in air and 0.6 M NaCl solution under anodic and cathodic applied potentials and at two different R ratios of 0.1 and 0.7. β-annealed Ti64 alloy was sensitive to environmental FCP in NaCl solution under both anodic and cathodic applied potentials at an R ratio of 0.1, while the environmental effect was almost negligible at an R ratio of 0.7. The extent of crack branching in air and at an R ratio of 0.1 decreased substantially in NaCl solution and/or at an R ratio of 0.7. The EBSD (electron backscatter diffraction) and SEM (scanning electron microscope) fractographic analyses on the FCP tested specimens showed that microstructure-sensitive cracking, rather than crystallographic cleavage cracking, became encouraged in NaCl solution and/or high R ratio. It was suggested that the extent of crack branching played an important role in determining the environmental FCP behavior of β-annealed Ti64 alloy.

The effect of stabilization annealing on the stress corrosion cracking (SCC) susceptibility of β-annealed Ti-6Al-4V (Ti64) alloy was examined in an aqueous 0.6 M NaCl solution under various applied potentials of +0.1, -0.05 and -0.1 V vs Ecorr, respectively, at a strain rate of 10 -6 s -1. The stabilization annealing substantially improved the resistance to SCC of β-annealed Ti64 alloy in 0.6 M NaCl solution under cathodic applied potentials, while the effect was marginal under an anodic applied potential. It was also noted that the areal fraction between ductile and brittle fracture of β-annealed Ti64 specimens, which were slow strain rate tested in 0.6 M NaCl solution, varied with stabilization annealing and applied potentials. The effect of stabilization annealing on the SCC behavior of β-annealed Ti64 alloy in SCC-causing environment was discussed based on the micrographic and fractographic observation.

Rapid melting and solidification cycles during laser-based additive manufacturing create non-equilibrium microstructures in stainless steels (SSs) including atomic segregation-mediated ultrafine δ-ferrite, in contrast to coarse δ-ferrite in typical casting-produced SSs. The formation of metastable ultrafine δ-ferrite in additively manufactured SSs generates a new coherent interface in austenitic matrix. However, currently a consensus on how ultrafine δ-ferrite interacts with dislocations is lacking, particularly in directed energy deposition-processed 304L SS. Herein, the role of ultrafine δ-ferrite on the mechanical properties of directed energy deposition-processed 304L SS was investigated by modifying the laser scan speeds of 850 and 1150 mm/min and by performing electron microscopy-based characterization. We find that the ultrafine δ-ferrite maintains coherency with a γ-austenite matrix in the undeformed state and interacts with dislocations during plastic deformation. Additionally, the twin volume fraction depends on the initial grain size of 304L SSs, which results in a 23 MPa (for strength) and 5% (for ductility) mechanical property difference between the 850 (SLOW) and 1150 (FAST) mm/min scan speed conditions. Through the synergetic effects of ultrafine δ-ferrite, deformation-induced twins and twin intersections, the present additively manufactured 304L SS achieves an outstanding ductility that is larger than that of the previous directed energy deposition-processed SSs. This result proves that the ultrafine metastable phase contributes to the prolonged plasticity of the additively manufactured metallic alloys if the metastable phase maintains coherency with the matrix during plastic deformation.

The passive films on typical stainless steels (SS) and on a newly developed high-Cr (17 wt%)-added 18 wt%-Mn steel (HCr-HMnS) were compared by Cs-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy and atom probe tomography. Although the passive films of all samples having similar Cr contents had the same thickness, unprecedented hexagonal wurtzite MnO inside the passive film of HCr-HMnS specimen was susceptible to corrosion cracking; this was not observed in the SS samples. This MnO caused crack formation during potentiodynamic polarization test, suggesting that reducing the harmful MnO by adding Mo and Ni facilitates the development of high-Mn base SS materials . Furthermore, higher MoO2 composition of the passive films on 316 type austenitic SS than 304 type series might would result in primarily the improved pitting resistance.

The effects of nanoprecipitations on the mechanical properties of Al-Zn-Mg-Cu alloys after GBF (gas bubbling filtration) and EMS (electromagnetic stirring) casting were investigated. Dendritic cell structures were formed after GBF processing, while globular dendritic structures were nucleated after EMS processing. Equiaxed cell sizes were smaller in the EMS-processed specimens compared to the GBF-processed specimens, confirmed by EBSD (electron backscatter diffraction) analysis. Nanoprecipitations of η′ phases inside of dendrites were observed by TEM (transmission electron microscope), and other Fe-bearing compounds were located in the dendritic boundaries. The yield strength of the T4 and T6 heat-treated specimens was close to 400 MPa and 500 MPa, respectively. Fractographic analysis was performed to investigate the effect of precipitations on tensile fracture.

Diffused hydrogen atoms in high-strength steels induce both cohesive energy drops and dislocation mobility enhancement, which usually degrade the mechanical properties of materials. However, the enhanced dislocation mobility could also increase the slip planarity, which enhances the mechanical properties of materials. In this study, effects of hydrogen charging on the mechanical properties of as-cast high-Mn steels were investigated. Hydrogen charging in the high-Mn steel promotes slip planarity with short-range ordering, which results in a large planar slip band fraction and strain hardening enhancement of the hydrogen-charged sample. This shows that hydrogen-induced ordering can be related to both deformation mechanism and mechanical property of hydrogen charged high-Mn steels.

The large strength difference between hard and soft components in heterogeneous structured materials leads to the evolution of high back-stress hardening, which increases the strength and ductility of materials simultaneously. Moreover, the combination of high shear strain and elevated temperature allows an increase in the strength of low-melting temperature metallic alloys by grain refinement, solute migration, and clustering. In this study, to design a new heterogeneous microstructure in the aluminum alloy, both room temperature (RT) and high-temperature (HT) ultrasonic nanocrystalline surface modification (UNSM) were conducted, and their mechanical properties and microstructural evolutions were investigated. The large shear strain from the UNSM treatment reduces the grain size at the sample surface and creates a gradient structure. The combination of shear strain and elevated temperature during UNSM treatment induces solute migration at a certain depth of the specimens, resulting in the nano-sized Mg-rich particles at the surface region. Both grain refinement and precipitation at the surface region of the HT sample provide strong back-stress hardening in the early stages of deformation that enhances the strength and ductility of materials. Therefore, a high shear strain and control of processing temperature allow the design of a unique heterogeneous microstructure in low-melting temperature metallic alloys, which is a good strategy for enhancing the mechanical properties of sheet or thin metallic products.

High frictional die and continuous rotation during high-pressure torsion provide not only a large shear strain but also a large amount of frictional heat that facilitates the generation of complex microstructural changes, including grain refinement, dynamic recovery, and solute migration. Since metallic alloys with low melting temperatures are sensitive to heat energy, the mechanical properties and microstructural evolution of high-pressure torsion-processed aluminum 7075 alloys are investigated in this study. The large shear strain resulting from high-pressure torsion induces both grain refinement and dislocation cell formation, leading to strength enhancement and ductility degradation of the alloy. The deformation and frictional heat become a driving force for solute migration, including brittle intermetallic compound dissolution and nano-sized precipitation generation in the matrix. These solute migration activities contribute toward enhancing both the strength and ductility by inducing precipitation hardening and dissolution of the brittle phase simultaneously. Consequently, both the strength and ductility of the high-pressure torsion-processed aluminum 7075 alloy become larger than that of the initial state. This result shows that the microstructural changes of the severe plastic deformation-processed low-melting-temperature metallic alloys induce a significant mechanical property enhancement of nanocrystalline materials.

Despite recent progress in achieving high mechanical properties of 3D printed metal products, the low productivity still remains a major limitation for their cost-effective feasibility in practical applications. To achieve high-speed printing with affordable mechanical properties, we increased the scanning speed of selective laser melting process with Ti–6Al–4V up to 1800 mm/s and applied a hot isostatic pressing (HIP) process to compensate for the porosity. In these high-speed printed specimens, the HIP process led to a microstructural change from αʹ-lath martensite to a Widmanstӓtten α-lamellar structure, which deteriorated their tensile properties due to the segregation of β-stabilizing atoms and caused inter-lamellar fracture. The deterioration phenomenon of high-speed printed Ti–6Al–4V specimens after the HIP process was found to be critically affected by the surface roughness of as-built state, which can be efficiently controlled with a build angle set-up.

A single-phase face-centered-cubic (FCC) high- or medium-entropy alloys (HEAs or MEAs) have attracted great attentions due to their novel damage-tolerance properties (strength, ductility, and fracture toughness) by generating nano-twins at cryogenic temperature. The fracture toughness assessment is essential for evaluating the reliability of high-performance materials for cryogenic applications; however, fracture studies on single-phase FCC HEAs showing transformation-induced plasticity (TRIP) have been hardly conducted. In this study, thus, damage-tolerance mechanisms of a V10Cr10Fe45Co30Ni5 HEA showing the FCC to body-centered-cubic (BCC) TRIP were investigated at room and cryogenic temperatures. At room temperature (298 K), the alloy shows the tensile strength of 731 MPa, elongation of 40%, and fracture toughness (KJIc) of 230 MPa m1/2. At cryogenic temperature (77 K), the strength and elongation improve to 1.2 GPa and 66%, respectively, while the KJIc remains almost constant at 237 MPa m1/2. Dislocation-mediated plasticity prevails at 298 K; however, the TRIP from FCC to BCC occurs at 77 K. Deformation and fracture mechanisms are analyzed by stacking fault energies and differences in Gibbs free energies between phases calculated by ab-initio methods, and are compared to those of CrMnFeCoNi, CrCoNi, Fe50Mn30Co10Cr10, and V10Cr10Fe45Co20Ni15 alloys. Despite the presence of a considerable amount of BCC which is intrinsically brittle at low temperature, the transformed BCC martensite shows ductile fracture after the fracture toughness test even in cryogenic environments. These results demonstrate that the FCC to BCC TRIP can be an attractive route in a field of HEA design to overcome the strength and toughness trade-off at cryogenic temperature.

The effect of superplastic forming (SPF) on tensile and S (stress)-N (number of cycles to failure) fatigue properties of Ti64 alloy was examined at 298 and 473 K. For simulating the superplastic forming exposure, millannealed Ti64 alloy sheet was heated in a vacuum chamber with a pre-determined temperature profile. For some as-exposed specimens, the α-case formed on the surface during expousre was mechanically removed to understand the effect of α-case on the mechanical properties of Ti64 alloy. It was found that the presence of α-case significantly affected the tensile and the fatigue properties of Ti64 alloy at 298 and 473 K by providing an easy initiation site for both tensile and fatigue fracture. The microstructural change during the SPF exposure was marginal in affecting the S-N fatigue properties of Ti64 alloy. Different testing temperature of 298 and 473 K affected the S-N fatigue behavior of as-received and as-exposed (α-case removed) Ti64 specimens, but not that of as-exposed specimen.

The micromechanics of plastic deformation and phase transformation in a three-phase advanced high strength steel are analyzed both experimentally and by microstructure-based simulations. The steel examined is a three-phase (ferrite, martensite and retained austenite) quenched and partitioned sheet steel with a tensile strength of ~980 MPa. The macroscopic flow behavior and the volume fraction of martensite resulting from the austenite–martensite transformation during deformation were measured. In addition, micropillar compression specimens were extracted from the individual ferrite grains and the martensite particles, and using a flat-punch nanoindenter, stress–strain curves were obtained. Finite element simulations idealize the microstructure as a composite that contains ferrite, martensite and retained austenite. All three phases are discretely modeled using appropriate crystal plasticity based constitutive relations. Material parameters for ferrite and martensite are determined by fitting numerical predictions to the micropillar data. The constitutive relation for retained austenite takes into account contributions to the strain rate from the austenite–martensite transformation, as well as slip in both the untransformed austenite and product martensite. Parameters for the retained austenite are then determined by fitting the predicted flow stress and transformed austenite volume fraction in a 3D microstructure to experimental measurements. Simulations are used to probe the role of the retained austenite in controlling the strain hardening behavior as well as internal stress and strain distributions in the microstructure.

Six low-carbon high-strength bainitic steels containing Cr, Mo, and B were fabricated by controlling finish cooling temperature, and the effect of bainitic microstructure on tensile and Charpy impact properties were investigated. All the specimens were composed primarily of bainitic ferrite, together with small amounts of granular bainite, acicular ferrite, martensite–austenite constituent. These bainitic microstructures were more critically affected by the finish cooling temperature than by the alloying elements. The H-series specimens with a high finish cooling temperature had larger amount of acicular ferrite and smaller amount of granular bainite and bainitic ferrite, compared to the L-series specimens with the low finish cooling temperature at the same chemical composition. The L-series specimens exhibited higher strength and yield ratio, and lower uniform and total elongations than the H-series specimens because the volume fraction of BF was higher in the L-series specimens than in the H-series specimens. On the other hand, the energy transition temperature decreased with increasing the volume fraction of AF having fine effective grain size, while it increased with an increase in the volume fraction of GB having coarse effective grain size. Thus, the energy transition temperature of the H-series specimens with the high finish cooling temperature were slightly lower than that of the L-series specimens with the low finish cooling temperature because the H-series specimens had a larger amount of AF than the L-series specimens.

Representative face-centered-cubic (FCC) high-entropy alloys (HEAs) or medium-entropy alloys (MEAs), e.g., equi-atomic CoCrFeMnNi or CrCoNi alloys, have drawn many attentions due to the excellent damage-tolerance at cryogenic temperature. The investigation of fracture toughness at 77 K is basically required for the reliable evaluation of high-performance alloys used for cryogenic applications; however, it has been rarely carried out for the non-equi-atomic FCC HEAs yet. In this study, tensile and fracture toughness tests were conducted on the non-equi-atomic V10Cr10Fe45Co20Ni15 alloy, and the results were compared with those of the equi-atomic CoCrFeMnNi and CrCoNi alloys. The present alloy shows a good damage tolerance at cryogenic temperature with tensile strength of 1 GPa and elongation of ∼60%. The KJIc fracture toughness values are 219 and 232 MPa m1/2 at 298 and 77 K, respectively, showing the increase in toughness with decreasing temperature. This increase results from the absence of twins at 298 K and the increased propensity to twin formation at 77 K, which is well confirmed by the variation of stacking fault energies (SFEs) by using Ab-initio calculations. The mechanical properties of the present alloy are actually similar or slightly lower than those of the other CoNiCr or FeMnCoNiCr alloy; instead, this study provides that neither composition nor certain elements are the most important factors dictating damage-tolerance of HEAs or MEAs.

The microstructural-mechanical correlative study has been conducted for characterization of selective laser melted H13 tool steel. Transformation behavior from austenite to martensite has been observed with partitioning of C in matrix with correlative atomic diffusivity during selective laser melting process. During solidification, columnar grain structures are formed due to epitaxial growth following the build direction of H13 tool steels. Columnar microstructures are mostly composed of martensite with small amount of retained austenite. Supercooling of H13 with high laser scan speed increased the nucleation sites, which reduced the diameter of columnar grain. During tensile test, deformation appeared in grain boundary while there was no significant martensitic phase transformation confirmed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) method and electron backscattered diffraction (EBSD) analysis. S2 (scan speed of 200 mm/s specimen had the better tensile property with tensile strength of 1700 MPa and elongation of 1.6% than the rest(

Two-ply Al/Cu sheets were prepared via roll bonding with different reduction ratios. Al/Cu sheets fabricated below 50% of reduction ratio exhibited relatively equiaxed grains without interface reaction, which resulted in weak joint-bonding strength. However, both strong metallurgical bonding at interface and fine, elongated grains from constituent alloys adjacent to the interface were successfully introduced under the reduction ratio of 65%, leading to a strongly enhanced bonding strength of 17.1 N/mm together with an increased elongation up to fracture by 28%.

In this study, four low-carbon high-strength bainitic steel specimens were fabricated by varying finish cooling temperatures and cooling rates, and their tensile and Charpy impact properties were investigated. All the bainitic steel specimens consisted of acicular ferrite, granular bainite, bainitic ferrite, and martensite-austenite constituents. The specimens fabricated with higher finish cooling temperature had a lower volume fraction of martensite-austenite constituent than the specimens fabricated with lower finish cooling temperature. The fast-cooled specimens had twice the volume fraction of bainitic ferrite and consequently higher yield and tensile strengths than the slow-cooled specimens. The energy transition temperature tended to increase with increasing effective grain size or with increasing volume fraction of granular bainite. The fast-cooled specimen fabricated with high finish cooling temperature and fast cooling rate showed the lowest energy transition temperature among the four specimens because of the lowest content of coarse granular bainite. These findings indicated that Charpy impact properties as well as strength could be improved by suppressing the formation of granular bainite, despite the presence of some hard microstructural constituents such as bainitic ferrite and martensite-austenite.

The effects of B and Cu addition and cooling rate on microstructure and mechanical properties of low-carbon, high-strength bainitic steels were investigated in this study. The steel specimens were composed mostly of bainitic ferrite, together with small amounts of acicular ferrite, granular bainite, and martensite. The yield and tensile strengths of all the specimens were higher than 1000 MPa and 1150 MPa, respectively, whereas the upper shelf energy was higher than 160 J and energy transition temperature was lower than 208 K (–65 °C) in most specimens. The slow-cooled specimens tended to have the lower strengths, higher elongation, and lower energy transition temperature than the fast-cooled specimens. The Charpy notch toughness was improved with increasing volume fraction of acicular ferrite because acicular ferrites favorably worked for Charpy notch toughness even when other low-toughness microstructures such as bainitic ferrite and martensite were mixed together. To develop high-strength bainitic steels with an excellent combination of strength and toughness, the formation of bainitic microstructures mixed with acicular ferrite was needed, and the formation of granular bainite was prevented.

The effects of carbon equivalent and cooling rateon tensile and Charpy impact properties of high-strength bainitic steels were investigated. Eight steel plates were fabricated with varying C, Cr, and Nb additions under two different cooling rates, and their microstructures, tensile, and Charpy impact properties were evaluated. Volume fractions of microstructural components present in the steels increased in the order of granular bainite, acicular ferrite, bainitic ferrite, and martensite as the carbon equivalent or cooling rate increased, which resulted in decreased ductility and upper shelf energy and increased energy transition temperature in spite of increased strength. In the steels containing about 50 vol.% of bainitic ferrite and martensite, the tensile strength was about 900 MPa, while the elongation and upper shelf energy were about 20% and 200 J, respectively. In order to achieve the best combination of tensile strength, ductility, and upper shelf energy, e.g., 860–900 MPa, 20%, and 200 J, respectively, granular bainite, and acicular ferrite were produced by controlling the carbon equivalent and cooling rate, while about 50 vol.% of bainitic ferrite and martensite were maintained to keep the high strength.

Six ultra-low-carbon high-strength bainitic steel plates were fabricated by controlling rolling and cooling conditions, and effects of bainitic microstructure on tensile and Charpy impact properties were investigated. The microstructural evolution was more critically affected by start cooling temperature and cooling rate than by finish rolling temperature. Bainitic microstructures such as granular bainites (GBs) and bainitic ferrites (BFs) were well developed as the start cooling temperature decreased or the cooling rate increased. When the steels cooled from 973 K or 873 K (700 °C or 600 °C) were compared under the same cooling rate of 10 K/s (10 °C/s), the steels cooled from 973 K (700 °C) consisted mainly of coarse GBs, while the steels cooled from 873 K (600 °C) contained a considerable amount of BFs having high strength, thereby resulting in the higher strength but the lower ductility and upper shelf energy (USE). When the steels cooled from 673 K (400 °C) at a cooling rate of 10 K/s (10 °C/s) or 0.1 K/s (0.1 °C/s) were compared under the same start cooling temperature of 873 K (600 °C), the fast cooled specimens were composed mainly of coarse GBs or BFs, while the slowly cooled specimens were composed mainly of acicular ferrites (AFs). Since AFs had small effective grain size and contained secondary phases finely distributed at grain boundaries, the slowly cooled specimens had a good combination of strength, ductility, and USE, together with very low energy transition temperature (ETT).