Application of color etching to study the microstructure of TRIP steel after laser remelting

TRIP type steels have a multi-phase structure, which includes such phases as: aus - tenite, bainite, ferrite and martensite. The presence of so many co-existing phases creates difficulties in their accurate identification. One of the methods used to identify the components of the microstructure is color metallography. Methods of color met - allography in contrary to some methods of microstructure identification (e.g. TEM, EBSD) are simple to use, cheap and not very time-consuming. However, there are still no detailed recommendations on the use of this method. The paper examines the pos- sibilities of application of colored etching methods, to distinguish the components of the microstructure of the as-received material and the welds of the TRIP type steel. Light microscopy methods were used for the study. The obtained results allow for a qualitative distinction of individual components of the microstructure.