Microstructure, texture and magnetic properties of strip casting Fe-6.2 wt%Si steel sheet

An Fe-6.2 wt%Si strip with equiaxed grains and mild {0 0 1}(0 nu w) fiber texture was produced by twinroll strip casting process. Then the as-cast strip was treated with or without the hot rolling prior to the warm rolling and annealing. When the hot rolling was not introduced, a fine and heterogeneous warm-rolled microstructure was produced and led to a fine recrystallization microstructure and very weak {0 0 1}(0 nu w) fiber texture in the annealed sheets. When the hot rolling was introduced, a coarse and homogeneous warm-rolled microstructure was produced and led to a very coarse recrystallization microstructure and much stronger {0 0 1}(0 nu w) fiber texture in the annealed sheets. The annealed sheets with hot rolling showed a higher magnetic induction and a higher core loss than those without hot rolling. Crown Copyright (C) 2012 Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.