Thermodynamics and Nucleation Kinetics Model of Nonalloyed Carbon Deoxidation of Bearing Steel

Abstract

Non alloyed carbon deoxidation can fundamentally solve the technical difficulty of fatigue failure of high‐quality bearing steel caused by inclusions. Herein, nonalloyed carbon deoxidation is presented with CO as a product, which can avoid the problem of residual inclusions. The thermodynamic and kinetic nucleation models of [C] deoxidation are constructed. The results suggest that a decrease in strengthens the deoxidation ability of [C], and the [%O] balanced with [%C] shows multiple decreases. When = 0.1 atm and [%C] = 0.5%, [%O] can be reduced to less than 10 ppm. However, from the results of the nucleation kinetic model, as decreases, the critical radius increases, and the resistance of CO nucleation also increases. This results in difficulty of nucleation. Based on the nucleation kinetic model, the following C–O reaction mechanism is proposed: 1) [C] and [O] move to the reaction interface, 2) [C] + [O] = CO, forming a critical bubble nucleus, and 3) the newly formed CO diffuses continuously into the critical bubble, causing the bubble to grow and float away. Alternatively, the CO separates from the gas–liquid interface and enters the bubble, which floats away.