The Influence of Thermomechanical Controlled Processing on Bainite Formation in Low Carbon High Strength Steel

Thermomechanical controlled processing is a very important way to control the microstructure and mechanical properties in low carbon, high strength steel. This is especially true in the case of bainite formation, where the complexity of the austenite-bainite transformation makes the control of the processing important. In this study, a low carbon, high manganese steel containing niobium was investigated to better understand the roles of austenite conditioning and cooling rates on the bainitic phase transformation. Specimens were compared with and without deformation, and followed by seven different cooling rates ranging between 0.5°C/s and 40°C/s. The CCT curves showed that the transformation behaviors and temperatures are very different. The different bainitic microstructures which varied with austenite deformation and cooling rates will be discussed.