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Revealing the Intrinsic Nanohardness of Lath Martensite in Low Carbon Steel

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Abstract

The mechanical property of martensite blocks in low carbon steel is studied by nanoindentation combined with scanning electron microscopy, electron backscattered diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy. The average nanohardnesses of small and large martensite blocks are 6.9 and 5.4 GPa, respectively. A size effect that the smaller is stronger is thus observed. This size effect was ascribed to the different formation sequence of martensite blocks during quenching. Therefore, the present work suggests that the as-quenched martensite may be considered as a composite material with the small but strong martensite blocks embedded in the large but soft martensite block matrix, which is important information for modeling the tensile stress–strain behavior of martensitic steel.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to Professor A.H.W. Ngan for providing the nanoindentation facilities. The authors express their gratitude to Drs. W. Xu, K. Zhu, and S. Allian, ArcelorMittal, for stimulating discussions. This work was supported by the National Science Foundation of China (Project No. 51301148).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Shenzhen Institute of Research and Innovation, University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, P.R.China

    B. B. He (Ph.D. Candidate) & M. X. Huang (Assistant Professor)

  2. Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, P.R.China

    B. B. He (Ph.D. Candidate) & M. X. Huang (Assistant Professor)

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  1. B. B. He
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  2. M. X. Huang
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Correspondence to M. X. Huang.

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Manuscript submitted September 18, 2014.

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He, B.B., Huang, M.X. Revealing the Intrinsic Nanohardness of Lath Martensite in Low Carbon Steel. Metall Mater Trans A 46, 688–694 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-014-2681-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-014-2681-7

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