Abstract
A vanadium-bearing variant of 316 stainless steel that was rapid solidification processed (RSP) by gas atomization and hot extrusion of the powder (10:1 extrusion ratio at 900°C) has been studied previously by conventional atom probe field ion microscopy (APFIM). The mechanical properties of this steel were markedly improved by RSP and aging (600°C for 1000 hours). High nitrogen (0.45 at% (0.2 wt%)) and oxygen (0.16 at% (0.05 wt%)) contents were intentionally introduced by melting under 80% nitrogen/20% oxygen gas and atomizing in nitrogen gas. A nominal boron concentration of 0.04 at% (0.01 wt%)) is present as a tramp element. As a result, a large number density (˜ 2 × 1021 m-3) of 25 nm plate-like vanadium-rich nitrides precipitate during aging of the alloy and these precipitates contribute a major portion of the strengthening. Previous efforts to locate the oxygen in the structure using APFIM were inconclusive largely due to poor counting statistics.
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