Structural transformations in high-nitrogen austenitic steel

Abstract

Results are reported from a study of the structure of steel aged after quenching and subsequent rolling at 20, 400, and 1000°C. It is shown that cold and warm rolling with low and moderate degrees of deformation intensifies the reaction which results in the discontinuous precipitation of chromium nitride. With high degrees of deformation, this reaction does not take place, and heterogeneous precipitation of nitrides occurs. Discontinuous and heterogeneous nitride precipitation take place during hot rolling. During subsequent aging, the processes of spheroidization, coalescence, and recrystallization result in the formation of a microduplex structure.