A modified theoretical model was proposed to predict the grain boundary segregation of impurity atoms during high temperature plastic deformation. The model was based upon the supersaturated vacancy-impurity complex created by plastic deformation and involved quasi-thermodynamics and kinetics. Model predictions were made for phosphorus grain boundary segregation during plastic deformation in ferrite steel. The results revealed that phosphorus segregates at grain boundaries during plastic deformation. At a given temperature, under a certain strain rate the segregation increased with increasing deformation amount until reaching a steady value, and at the same deformation amount it increased with increasing strain rate. The predicted results were compared with the available experimental values, indicating that there was a reasonable agreement between the theoretical predictions and the experimental observations.

Modelling of Grain Boundary Impurity Segregation during High Temperature Plastic Deformation. X.M.Chen, S.H.Song: Science China - Physics, Mechanics & Astronomy, 2011, 54[5], 872-7