The influence of Cr and N additions on the mechanical properties of a Fe-Mn-C steel was investigated. The chemical composition was found to have a pronounced effect on the strain-hardening behavior, due to the strain-induced sequence of the ␥ : : ␣Ј martensitic transformations. It was found that Cr and N suppress this transformation sequence. At Cr levels higher than 7.5 mass pct, no ␣Ј martensite was formed, which led to a pronounced improvement of the ductility. The differences in transformation behavior can be attributed to the change in the intrinsic stacking-fault energy (ISFE): in the compositional range studied, Cr and N additions cause an increase of the ISFE.

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A good combination of strength and toughness in HSLA steels can be achieved by the addition of microalloying elements such as Nb. Nb can retard the static recrystallization of austenite at lower temperatures by solute drag or by precipitation pinning. In this study, the recrystallization behavior of four Nb-microalloyed model alloys which were designed to show either extensive or almost no precipitation, was compared by multi-hit torsion tests and double hit compression tests. A good consistency between the different types of tests was found and the results were verified by optical micrographs. Further, by construction of softeningtime-temperature diagrams the recrystallization behavior was linked to the precipitation state of the material which was investigated by thermodynamical equilibrium calculations and by experimental observations from TEM-EDX, Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectroscopy and X-ray Diffraction. Quantitative agreement between the experimental measurements and the calculations for precipitated mass fraction and precipitate composition as a function of temperature and steel composition is demonstrated.KEY WORDS: recrystallization; microalloyed steels; precipitation; solute drag. 911© 2009 ISIJ tions with experimental data from Craven et al. 13)The objective of the present paper is to separate both retarding mechanisms, i.e. solute drag and precipitation pinning, by investigating model alloys designed to show either extensive or almost no precipitation. Moreover, the recrystallization kinetics of four Nb-microalloyed steels during hot deformation is linked to the morphology and composition of the precipitates and the amount of Nb-solutes found in these materials. The recrystallization kinetics were investigated combining different hot deformation testing techniques while information on the precipitation state of the material was obtained from thermodynamic equilibrium calculations and from a combination of experimental observation techniques. With this work, a contribution to the understanding of the fundamental mechanisms responsible for the retardation of austenite recrystallization in Nb-microalloyed steels is achieved. Experimental ProcedureFour model alloys were designed and casted as 100 kg ingots in a Pfeiffer vacuum furnace operated under argon gas atmosphere. The chemical composition of these alloys can be found in Table 1. The C-Mn-reference alloy, without additional Nb, represents a reference steel. The second alloy, a lowC-Mn-Nb alloy containing only a few ppm C, allowed to study the effect of Nb in solid solution. The third alloy (C-Mn-Nb) was designed to study the effect of NbC-precipitates on the recrystallization kinetics. To have the highest fraction of NbC precipitates possible, a stoichiometric Nb/C-ratio of 8/1 was chosen. Finally, the fourth alloy (C-Mn-Nb-N) was designed to study the influence of N on the recrystallization and precipitation behavior. The cast blocks were thermomechanically processed under conditions comparable to those during industrial steel plate rolli...

Steel linepipes produced by high frequency induction welding can result in a low-toughness zone at the weld junction, even after a heat treatment which reaustenitises the affected region. The possible causes for low toughness are explored, including microstructure, retained austenite, inclusions and crystallographic texture. It is found that the toughness is reduced primarily by the tendency for cleavage planes of ferrite crystals to align and hence create a macroscopic plane on which cleavage can propagate easily with little resistance from grain boundaries. This mechanism suggests that an appropriate heat treatment may alter the texture sufficiently to enhance the toughness of the zone concerned.

Line pipe manufacturers always have to verify the mechanical properties on pipe to make sure that the pipe meets the requirements specified by the standard and/or customer. This involves measurement of mechanical properties along the hoop direction. The most accurate way to do so is by performing a ring expansion test, which, however, requires dedicated tools. The two other methodologies consist of standard tensile tests on either non-flattened round bar samples or so called ‘flattened tensile samples’. Round bar samples have the disadvantage that only part of the pipe’s wall thickness is considered. Furthermore they can only be used in case of larger OD/t ratios. Tests on flattened samples, on the other hand, require a flattening operation, which induces additional plastic deformation. However, this flattening operation is not standardized. Moreover, it was observed that the mechanical properties — especially the yield strength — resulting from tensile tests on flattened samples largely depend on test parameters such as residual deflection, extensometer position, flattening procedure, etc. Most manufacturers prefer to test flattened samples, because sample preparation is straightforward and cheap. Moreover it only requires a standard tensile bench. An extensive FEA (Finite Element Analysis) study was launched to investigate the influence of those parameters on the measured yield strength. The applied FEA methodology consists of three steps. First the complete pipe forming process is modeled (in a simplified way). Next a pipe sample is flattened. Finally a tensile sample is cut from the flattened pipe sample and loaded in tension. The mechanical material behaviour is described by a combined kinematic-isotropic hardening model, which allows taking into account the Bauschinger effect. The results are also compared to simulations of ring expansion tests and tests on round bar samples. Next a dedicated experimental test campaign was performed to verify the results of FEA. Results of ring expansion tests are compared to results obtained on round bar samples and flattened tensile samples. The results of this study have shown that the applied methodology significantly affects the measured yield strength. Moreover tests on insufficiently flattened samples could considerably underestimate the actual yield strength on pipe. Finally some guidelines are provided to improve the reproducibility of the measured yield strength when using flattened samples.