Effect of annealing time on the microstructure and mechanical properties of aluminum added low-density medium manganese steel

The current investigation reports the influence of annealing time on the microstructure, mechanical properties and mechanical stability of austenite in a thermo-mechanically processed medium-Mn (Fe-3.92Al-6.78Mn-1.34Si-0.18C (wt.%)) steel. The specimen annealed at 750 °C for 60 min has better tensile properties than the 30 and 180 min annealed specimen. The combination of higher austenite fraction, higher transformation ratio of austenite and optimum recrystallized fraction lead to the better tensile properties of 60 min annealed specimen. Further, the lower mechanical stability of austenite promotes the transformation-induced plasticity (TRIP) effect, which improves the ductility of the 60 min annealed specimen. © 2022 Elsevier B.V.