Influence of Thermo-Mechanical Process and Nb-V Microalloying on Microstructure and Mechanical Properties of Fe–Mn–Al–C Austenitic Steel

In present study, a novel Nb-V microalloyed Fe–Mn–Al–C steel and a non-microalloyed Fe–Mn–Al–C austenitic steel were treated with different thermo-mechanical processes. The microstructure of the test steels was observed by scanning electron microscope, transmission electron microscope, electron probe micro-analyzer, and X-ray diffractometer. A tensile test was conducted to estimate the mechanical properties of the test steels. Results show that the equiaxed austenitic grains are obtained in both test steels, while hot rolling reduces the grain size significantly. The grain size of the Fe–Mn–Al–C steel decreases by 40%–55% after the addition of Nb-V due to the precipitation of nanoscale (Nb,V)C particles within the austenite matrix. Compared with the solid solution treated specimens, the strength of the hot-rolled or aged specimens is improved. Meanwhile, the strength of the Fe–Mn–Al–C steel with Nb-V microalloying is also increased by 55 MPa due to the precipitation strengthening and fine grain strengthening, while the elongation is decreased. The Nb-V microalloyed Fe–Mn–Al–C steel, after hot rolling + aging treatment, obtains the maximum strength, with the yield and tensile strength of 669 MPa and 1001 MPa, respectively. The strengthening mechanisms that contribute significantly to the yield strength are solid solution strengthening and dislocation strengthening. They are 185 MPa and 211 MPa, respectively, for the Nb-V microalloyed Fe–Mn–Al–C steel at hot rolling + aging conditions. Meanwhile, the segregation of carbon atoms after aging treatment also improves the yield strength significantly.