2012 Volume 98 Issue 8 Pages 434-441
In this study, the precipitation behavior of middle carbon steels with single and multiple additions of 0.3mass%V and 2mass%Cu has been investigated. The precipitation treatment was carried out isothermally at 600°C.
In the 0.3mass%V bearing steel, precipitates were observed in rows, indicating the occurrence of the interphase precipitation. On the other hand, precipitates observed in the 2mass%Cu bearing steel were randomly dispersed. In the V and Cu bearing steel, Cu precipitates were not randomly dispersed and mainly observed attached with VCN which were precipitated in rows. In the paper, the different precipitation behavior of the three steels is discussed in detail and is explained from a viewpoint of the thermodynamics and kinetics using a metallurgical model.
