In situ X-Ray Diffraction Analysis of Carbon Partitioning During Quenching of Low Carbon Steel

In situ X-ray diffraction investigations of phase transformations during quenching of low carbon steel were performed at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF, Grenoble, France) at beamline ID11. A dynamic stabilization of the retained austenite during cooling below martensite start was identified, resulting in an amount of retained austenite of approximately 4 vol pct. The reason for this dynamic stabilization is a carbon partitioning occurring directly during quenching from martensite (and a small amount of bainite) into retained austenite. A carbon content above 0.5 mass pct was determined in the retained austenite, while the nominal carbon content of the steel was 0.2 mass pct. The martensitic transformation kinetic was compared with the models of Koistinen-Marburger and a modification proposed by Wildau. The analysis revealed that the Koistinen-Marburger equation does not provide reliable kinetic modeling for the described experiments, while the modification of Wildau well describes the transformation kinetic.