• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.8-13
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• 2020

Effect of heat treatment on microstructure and mechanical properties of an Fe-6.5Mn-0.08C medium-manganese steel is investigated in this study. Three kinds of medium-manganese steel specimens are fabricated by varying heat treatments of intermediate quenching (IQ), step quenching (SQ), and intercritical annealing (IA). Hardness and tensile tests are performed to examine the correlation of microstructure and mechanical properties for the Fe-6.5Mn-0.08C medium-manganese steel specimens. The IQ and SQ specimens have microstructures of martensite matrix with ferrite, whereas IA specimen exhibits microstructure of acicular ferrite matrix with martensite. The tensile test results show that the SQ specimen with martensite matrix has the highest yield strength and the lowest elongation. On the other hand, the SQ specimen has the highest hardness due to the relatively lower reduction of carbon content in martensite during intercritical annealing. According to the fractography of tensile tested specimens, the SQ specimen exhibits a dimple and quasi-cleavage fracture appearance while the IQ and IA specimens have fully ductile fracture appearance with fine-sized dimples caused by microvoid coalescence at ferrite and martensite interface.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Heat Treatment
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.338-343
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• 2010

Mechanical properties and microstructures of medium carbon high manganese steels were investigated in terms of alloying elements such as Mn, C contents, and heat treatment condition. Austenite volume fraction was increased with increasing Mn content, leading to hardness decrease in the range of Mn content of above 10% after quenching and tempering. Such results are also supported by microstructural analysis and X-ray diffraction in that the increase in mangaese content results in the increase in austenite fraction. Studies on tempering condition indicated that not only hardness and tensile strength but also charpy impact values were reduced as tempering temperature were raised in the range of $250^{\circ}C$ to $600^{\circ}C$. It was also observed that fracture mode was changed from dimple to intergranular fracture. Such results are thought to be due to very fine carbide precipitation or impurity segreagation at grain boundaries as tempering temperature goes up. Heat treatment of Fe-5Mn-2Si-1Al-0.4C can be optimized by austenitizing at $850^{\circ}C$, air cooling and tempering at $250^{\circ}C$, resulting in 1950 MPa in Tensile strength, 17% in elongation and 23.3 $J/cm^2$ in charpy impact energy with high work hardening characteristics.

• Korean Journal of Materials Research
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• v.25 no.11
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• pp.583-589
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• 2015

This paper presents a study on the room- and low-temperature impact toughness of hypoeutectoid steels with ferrite-pearlite structures. Six kinds of hypoeutectoid steel specimens were fabricated by varying the carbon content and austenitizing temperature to investigate the effect of microstructural factors such as pearlite volume fraction, interlamellar spacing, and cementite thickness on the impact toughness. The pearlite volume fraction usually increased with increasing carbon content and austenitizing temperature, while the pearlite interlamellar spacing and cementite thickness mostly decreased with increasing carbon content and austenitizing temperature. The 30C steel with medium pearlite volume fraction and higher manganese content, on the other hand, even though it had a higher volume fraction of pearlite than did the 20C steel, showed a better low-temperature toughness due to its having the lowest ductile-brittle transition temperature. This is because various microstructural factors in addition to the pearlite volume fraction largely affect the ductile-brittle transition temperature and low-temperature toughness of hypoeutectoid steels with ferrite-pearlite structure. In order to improve the room- and low-temperature impact toughness of hypoeutectoid steels with different ferrite-pearlite structures, therefore, more systematic studies are required to understand the effects of various microstructural factors on impact toughness, with a viewpoint of ductile-brittle transition temperature.

• Advances in materials Research
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.195-201
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• 2018

High Strength low alloy steels containing various levels of C, Nb and Mn were used and for each of which, a simulated double thermal cycle was applied with the same first peak temperature and different second peak temperatures to produce HAZ microstructure corresponding to multi-pass weld. Effect of double cycle second temperature on the microstructure was observed and compared with single cycle results obtained from previous works, it was found that the percentage of martensite austenite constituent (MA) increases by Nb addition for all steels with the same Mn content and the increase in Mn content at the same Nb content shows an increase in MA area fraction as well. MA area fraction obtained for the double cycle is larger than that obtained for the single cycle for all steels used which imply that MA will have great role in the brittle fracture initiation for double cycle and the inter-pass temperature should be controlled for medium and high-carbon Mn steel to avoid large area fraction of MA. The beneficial effects of Niobium obtained in single pass weld were not observed for the double cycle or multi pass welds.