Abstract

Friction and wear performance of austenite stainless steels have been extensively studied and show a close relationship with the friction-induced martensitic transformation. However, how the grain size and associated friction-induced martensitic transformation behavior affect the tribological properties of austenite steels have not been systematically studied. In this work, dry sliding tests were performed on an AISI 304 stainless steel with a grain size ranging from 25 to 92 μm. The friction-induced surface morphology and microstructure evolution were characterized. Friction-induced martensitic transformation behavior, including martensite nucleation, martensite growth and martensite variant selection and its effect on the friction and wear behavior of the 304 stainless steel were analyzed. The results showed that both the surface coefficient of friction (COF) and the wear rate increase with the grain size. The COF was reduced three times and wear rate was reduced by 30% as the grain size decreased from 92 to 25 μm. A possible mechanism is proposed to account for the effect of grain size on the tribological behavior. It is discussed that austenite steel with refined grain size tends to suppress the amount of friction-induced martensitic transformed and significantly alleviates both the plowing and adhesive effect during dry sliding.

Highlights

  • Austenite stainless steels with low stacking fault energy (SFE) have been widely used in structural applications due to their good combination of strength and ductility, excellent corrosion resistance, and desirable weldability [1]

  • The results showed that both the surface coefficient of friction (COF) and the wear rate increase with the grain size

  • It was widely assumed that their excellent combination of strength and ductility is through the transformation-induced plasticity (TRIP) effect, in which the metastable austenite transforms to martensite upon plastic deformation [2]

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Summary

Introduction

Austenite stainless steels with low stacking fault energy (SFE) have been widely used in structural applications due to their good combination of strength and ductility, excellent corrosion resistance, and desirable weldability [1]. It was widely assumed that their excellent combination of strength and ductility is through the transformation-induced plasticity (TRIP) effect, in which the metastable austenite transforms to martensite upon plastic deformation [2]. Stress or stain-induced martensitic phase transformation has been extensively identified in the austenite stainless steels during their sheet forming and crash applications, and significantly affects their engineering performance [3]. Tribological performance in terms of friction and wear is an important property in the manufacturing and applications of austenite stainless steels, for mechanical components subjected to sliding motion, such as bearing, pistons, and valves, in medical, marine and automotive applications which require both high bearing strength and good corrosion resistance [4,5]. It is fundamentally assumed that friction and wear behaviors are results of materials’

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