Papers by Author: Takuto Yamaguchi

Abstract: Microstructure change during warm deformation of tempered lath martensite in Fe-2mass%Mn-C alloys with different carbon contents in the range between 0.1 and 0.8mass%C was investigated. Specimens of the alloys after being quenched and tempered at 923K for 0.3ks were compressed by 50% with a strain rate varying from 10-3 to 10-4s-1 at 923K. EBSD analysis of the deformed microstructures has revealed that fine equiaxed ferrite (α) grains surrounded by high-angle boundaries are formed by dynamic recrystallization (DRX). As carbon content increases, the DRX α grain size decreases. This could be attributed to the change in volume fraction of the cementite (θ) phase as boundary dragging particles. The sub-micron θ particles can suppress the coarsening of the DRX α grains by exerting a pinning effect on grain boundary migration. Furthermore, the fraction of recrystallized region increases by increasing carbon content, presumably due to a decrease in the martensite block width as an initial α grain size and a larger volume fraction of hard second phase (θ) particles. Both of these should increase inhomogeneous plastic deformation which promotes the recrystallization. It seems that continuous DRX is responsible for the formation of ultrafine α grains in the tempered lath martensite.

Abstract: The microstructure change by warm deformation in high-carbon steels with different initial ferrite (α) + cementite (θ) duplex microstructures has been examined. Three kinds of initial structures, i.e., pearlite, α+spheroidized θ and tempered martensite, were prepared using Fe-0.8C-2Mn and Fe-1.0C-1.4Cr alloys and compressed by 30-75% at 973K at a strain rate of 5x10-4 s-1. Equiaxed fine α grains, approximately 2μm in diameter and mostly bounded by high-angle boundaries, are formed with spheroidized θ by dynamic recrystallization during compression of the pearlite by 75%. When the (α+θ) duplex structure containing spheroidized θ was deformed, the original α grains become elongated and only subgrains are formed within them by dynamic recovery. For the tempered martensite, equiaxed α grains similar to those in the deformed pearlite were obtained after 50% compression. This indicates that the critical strain needed for the completion of dynamic recrystallization of α is smaller for the tempered martensite than for the other structures.