Effect of Second Phase on Mechanical Properties of Bainite-Base Steels

Effects of acicular ferrite and retained austenite on the mechanical properties of bainite-base steels were investigated. Various morphology and volume fraction of constituent phases have been obtained by control of hot rolling conditions and alloy compositions. It has been shown that the steels containing retained austenite have better combinations of strength and ductility than the ones with no retained austenite. However, there is no noticeable change in DBTT by the incorporation of retained austenite in the microstructure since retained austenite exists as fine particles. On the other hand, DBTT of the steels are largely affected by the presence of acicular ferrite in the microstructure. EBSD analyses of fractured Charpy specimens show that cracks are deflected within the morphological packet of acicular ferrite, indicating its role in reducing the effective grain size of the steels.