In-Situ X-Ray Investigations and Computer Simulation during Continuous Heating of a Ball Bearing Steel

Abstract

This article presents a comparison between transformation kinetics obtained by in-situ X-ray diffraction during continuous heating of a ball bearing steel AISI 52100 to austenitizing temperature and computer simulation. In order to have acquisition times short enough for good time resolution, X-ray diffraction experiments were done with special equipment such as a rotating anode producing intense X-ray radiation and an area detector. Computer simulations of austenitizing were performed with a Johnson–Mehl–Avrami equation. Besides transformation kinetics, the lattice parameters of ferrite and austenite were also studied. Lattice parameters measured by in-situ X-ray diffraction match calculations from models. Good agreement between phase contents obtained by simulation and by X-ray diffraction was obtained.